<![CDATA[Midlife sleep trouble predicts poorer well-being 9 years later, especially for women. Here’s why clinicians should ask about sleep and menopause triggers.]]>
<![CDATA[New spectral sleep analysis and HD‑tDCS aim to strengthen restorative sleep and memory, offering promise for schizophrenia-related cognitive deficits.]]>
The relationship between healthy sleep patterns and the risk of scoliosis: a large prospective cohort study
BackgroundCurrently, prospective evidence on how sleep habits specifically affect scoliosis is nearly nonexistent. We therefore sought to clarify the association between comprehensive sleep behavior patterns and the incidence of this disease.MethodsThis study conducted a prospective cohort study based on the UK Biobank (UKB), including 408,870 participants who did not have scoliosis at baseline. We have constructed a comprehensive sleep scoring system that integrates the following five key indicators: sleep chronotype, sleep duration, insomnia, snoring, and daytime sleepiness. To evaluate the association between healthy sleep patterns and the risk of scoliosis, we conducted a statistical analysis using the Cox proportional hazards regression model.ResultsOver a mean follow-up of 15.82 years, 2,976 incident cases of scoliosis were recorded (0.73%). The 408,870 participants who were free of scoliosis at baseline had a mean age of 56.48 years. Distribution of the healthy sleep score was as follows: 9,939 participants (2.43%) had 0–1 of the five healthy sleep behaviors, 46,175 (11.29%) had 2 behaviors, 115,094 (28.15%) had 3 behaviors, 150,287 (36.76%) had 4 behaviors, and 87,375 (21.37%) had all five. In multivariable models, each 1-point increase in the healthy sleep score was associated with a 10% lower risk of scoliosis [hazard ratio (HR) = 0.90; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.87, 0.93]. Compared with the 0–1 score group, the multivariable-adjusted HR (95% CI) for participants with a score of 5 was 0.64 (0.52, 0.80). In subgroup analyses, the inverse association between sleep score and scoliosis risk persisted among participants without diabetes but was absent among those with diabetes (pinteraction < 0.05).ConclusionCohort analysis results confirm that adherence to a healthy sleep-behavior pattern significantly reduces the risk of scoliosis.
Impact of C-reactive protein–triglyceride–glucose and systemic immune-inflammation indices on obstructive sleep apnea in older adults with depression
ObjectiveBoth the C-reactive protein (CRP)–triglyceride–glucose index (CTI) and the systemic immune-inflammation index (SII) are easily accessible, cost-effective, and rapid indices derived from biochemical examinations. The study aimed to identify the roles of the CTI and SII in older adults with comorbid obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and depression.MethodsThe study included 52 older patients with depression coexisting with OSA and 108 patients with depression but without OSA. The CTI was calculated using the following equation: 0.412 × Ln (CRP) (mg/dL) + Ln [triglyceride (mg/dL) × fasting glucose (mg/dL)/2]. The SII was calculated using the formula: platelet × neutrophil/lymphocyte.ResultsA greater proportion of men and a higher mean body mass index were found in older adults with comorbid OSA and depression compared to those with depression only (p < 0.05). Older adults with comorbid OSA and depression also showed higher levels of fasting glucose, triglycerides, CRP, the triglyceride–glucose (TyG) index, and the CTI than those with depression alone. We also found that older adults with comorbid OSA and depression had higher neutrophil counts, a higher neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and a higher platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and an increased SII compared to those with depression alone. Logistic regression analysis demonstrated that male sex and higher CTI and SII values were correlated with the presence of OSA in patients with depression.ConclusionThe study demonstrated that higher CTI and SII values may be associated with comorbid OSA and depression in older adults.
<![CDATA[New SLEEP 2026 insights reveal how REM sleep preserves memories while stripping emotional sting—key clues for PTSD and healthier sleep.]]>
<![CDATA[Menopause-related sleep disruptions and slow-wave scoring bias may skew women’s neurodegeneration risk insights, SLEEP 2026 highlights.]]>
Generative AI for pre-consultation mental health triage in disorders of gut-brain interaction
Disorders of gut-brain interaction (DGBI) are common, disabling, and frequently accompanied by anxiety, depressive symptoms, sleep disturbance, symptom-related fear, and repeated health care use. In routine gastroenterology practice, these problems are often recognized late, after fragmented histories, multiple visits, and avoidable investigations. Recent work on generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) and conversational systems suggests a narrower and more practical clinical use case than autonomous diagnosis: supervised pre-consultation triage. We propose that DGBI is a suitable setting for this approach because triage depends on integrating symptom narratives, prior investigations, alarm features, and psychosocial context rather than on a single test result. A GenAI-enabled intake tool could summarize patient-entered histories, incorporate brief distress screening and symptom diaries, flag possible medical or psychiatric escalation, and help route patients toward standard gastroenterology review, integrated psychogastroenterology, dietetic input, or urgent assessment. Its value would lie in making the first consultation more efficient and more clinically informed, not in replacing specialist judgment. For such systems to be acceptable, five conditions are essential: a narrowly defined triage task, multidomain but proportionate data collection, explicit rules for medical and psychiatric escalation, clinician review before action, and prospective evaluation across workflow, safety, equity, and patient acceptability. DGBI offers a realistic opportunity to develop GenAI tools that are useful precisely because they are constrained, auditable, and embedded in multidisciplinary care.
<![CDATA[Learn more about the bidirectional relationship between sleep and waking behaviors.]]>
<![CDATA[Explore how digital reminders boost prospective memory in aging and dementia, plus practical sleep habits that turn health knowledge into real behavior changes.]]>
<![CDATA[New research links better NREM sleep to slower Alzheimer disease changes: zolpidem restores brain rhythms, cuts amyloid, and boosts memory in mice models.]]>