Dysfunctional respiration as a risk factor for Alzheimer disease: a hypothesis.

Cerebral hypoxia and ischemia are critical pathological factors in the etiology of Alzheimer disease. Common types of dysfunctional respiration, such as hyperventilation, oral breathing, thoracic breathing and hypoventilation have been shown to induce cerebral hypoxia and ischemia. Therefore, it is proposed that these respiratory abnormalities are risk factors in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer disease. Consequently, correcting these respiratory abnormalities could counteract the pathogenesis of Alzheimer disease in vulnerable populations. These therapeutic strategies might also be applicable to other types of degenerative dementia that share pathomechanisms with Alzheimer disease, e.g., dementia with Lewy bodies, frontotemporal dementia and vascular dementia.