Dynamics of EEG background activity level during quiet sleep in multiple nocturnal sleep episodes in infants. 1997

I Fagioli, and P Salzarulo
Dipartimento di Teoria, Storia e Ricerca Sociale, Università di Trento, Italy. ifagioli@risc1.gelso.unitn.it

The study reported in this paper investigated the dynamics of EEG background activity during quiet sleep (QS) in the first year of life. These dynamics have been previously shown to follow an intra-sleep trend within a single sleep episode, and the aim of this study was to show whether they were similar in two successive nocturnal sleep episodes interrupted by a waking episode, or whether they exhibited a progressive trend across the two episodes. The polygraphic recordings of two groups of 6 infants aged from 9 to 15 weeks old and from 25 to 47 weeks old, whose nocturnal sleep organisation was spontaneously interrupted, were selected. Three indicators of the time course of the parameter value, obtained from automatic analysis and reflecting the degree of synchronisation of the EEG activity recorded by the centro-occipital lead, were computed for the first two QS periods of two successive sleep episodes: the parameter range (difference between the EEG parameter value at the QS onset and that at the trough); the trough latency (time interval between QS onset and trough); and rate of synchronisation (range/trough latency). All 3 indicators differed between the first and the second QS period of both sleep episodes independently of age. The rate of synchronisation (but not the parameter range and the trough latency) was higher in the first sleep episode than in the second one, showing an over-night decreasing trend. Those results show that, when nocturnal sleep in infants is split into two episodes separated by an intervening waking, also the second sleep episode displays an internal organisation of its EEG dynamics. Moreover, an across-night trend in the rate of synchronisation can be observed from an early age, a finding which suggests, again, the early emergence of homeostatic regulation of sleep.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D007223 Infant A child between 1 and 23 months of age. Infants
D002657 Child Development The continuous sequential physiological and psychological maturing of an individual from birth up to but not including ADOLESCENCE. Infant Development,Development, Child,Development, Infant
D002940 Circadian Rhythm The regular recurrence, in cycles of about 24 hours, of biological processes or activities, such as sensitivity to drugs or environmental and physiological stimuli. Diurnal Rhythm,Nyctohemeral Rhythm,Twenty-Four Hour Rhythm,Nycthemeral Rhythm,Circadian Rhythms,Diurnal Rhythms,Nycthemeral Rhythms,Nyctohemeral Rhythms,Rhythm, Circadian,Rhythm, Diurnal,Rhythm, Nycthemeral,Rhythm, Nyctohemeral,Rhythm, Twenty-Four Hour,Rhythms, Circadian,Rhythms, Diurnal,Rhythms, Nycthemeral,Rhythms, Nyctohemeral,Rhythms, Twenty-Four Hour,Twenty Four Hour Rhythm,Twenty-Four Hour Rhythms
D004569 Electroencephalography Recording of electric currents developed in the brain by means of electrodes applied to the scalp, to the surface of the brain, or placed within the substance of the brain. EEG,Electroencephalogram,Electroencephalograms
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000367 Age Factors Age as a constituent element or influence contributing to the production of a result. It may be applicable to the cause or the effect of a circumstance. It is used with human or animal concepts but should be differentiated from AGING, a physiological process, and TIME FACTORS which refers only to the passage of time. Age Reporting,Age Factor,Factor, Age,Factors, Age
D012895 Sleep, REM A stage of sleep characterized by rapid movements of the eye and low voltage fast pattern EEG. It is usually associated with dreaming. Fast-Wave Sleep,Paradoxical Sleep,Rapid Eye Movements,Rhombencephalic Sleep,Sleep, Fast-Wave,REM Sleep,Eye Movement, Rapid,Eye Movements, Rapid,Fast Wave Sleep,Movement, Rapid Eye,Movements, Rapid Eye,Rapid Eye Movement,Sleep, Fast Wave,Sleep, Paradoxical,Sleep, Rhombencephalic
D013997 Time Factors Elements of limited time intervals, contributing to particular results or situations. Time Series,Factor, Time,Time Factor
D014851 Wakefulness A state in which there is an enhanced potential for sensitivity and an efficient responsiveness to external stimuli. Wakefulnesses
D017286 Polysomnography Simultaneous and continuous monitoring of several parameters during sleep to study normal and abnormal sleep. The study includes monitoring of brain waves, to assess sleep stages, and other physiological variables such as breathing, eye movements, and blood oxygen levels which exhibit a disrupted pattern with sleep disturbances. Monitoring, Sleep,Somnography,Polysomnographies,Sleep Monitoring,Somnographies

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