• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.139-143
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• 2005

Periodic limb movements in sleep (PLMS) have been diagnosed easily by nocturnal polysomnography (NPSG) and treated effectively with dopamine receptor agonist, benzodiazepine and opioid. However, few reports have objectively assessed the treatment responses. We treated a PLMS patient with clonazepam and pramipexole, and evaluated their efficacy with actigraphy. Clonazepam improved sleep quality without reducing frequency of limb movements, and pramipexole reduced frequency of limb movements without improving sleep quality, results which are consistent with previous study findings. Actigraphy proved useful in evaluation of treatment response of PLMS.

• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.21-28
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• 2014

Objective: Few studies have evaluated the personality characteristics of patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and simple snoring. We investigated the personality characteristics of OSA and simple snoring patients and compared differences in personality between the two groups using the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ). Materials and Methods: Two hundred and thirty-seven patients who were suspected to have OSA or simple snoring participated in this study. A self-questionnaire which included the EPQ was administered to all participants. All subjects underwent polysomnography in a sleep laboratory and those with an apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) ${\geq}5$ were included in the OSA group, while those with an AHI <5 were included in the simple snoring group. Results: OSA patients had significantly lower scores for Psychoticism (F=4.563, p=0.034) than simple snorers. There were no significant differences in Extraversion (F=3.029, p=0.083), Lie (F=0.398, p=0.529), or Neuroticism (F=3.367, p=0.068) scores between the two groups. In the correlation analysis of the OSA group, AHI was positively correlated with Extraversion score (r= 0.16, p=0.029) and negatively correlated with Lie score (B=-0.31, p<0.001). Using multiple stepwise linear regression analysis with the four EPQ parameter scores as dependent variables, Lie score was associated with older age (B=0.14, p<0.001) and lower AHI (B=-0.05, p<0.001), Psychoticism score was associated with higher Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI ; B=0.14, p<0.001), Neuroticism score was associated with higher PSQI (B=0.34, p=0.001) and female sex (B=3.15, p=0.003), and Extraversion score was associated with younger age (B=-0.08, p=0.020) and higher body mass index (B=0.26, p=0.023). Conclusion: This study suggests that patients with OSA are significantly less prone to psychotic personality characteristics than those with simple snoring. Among OSA patients, higher AHI was correlated with low falsehood and high extraversion tendencies.

• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.45-51
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• 2006

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) syndrome disrupts normal sleep. However, there were few studies to evaluate the asymmetric distribution, the one of the important factors of normal sleep in OSA subjects. We hypothesized that asymmetry would be broken in OSA patients. 49 male subjects with the complaint of heavy snoring were studied with polysomnography. We divided them into two groups based on the apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) fifteen: 13 simple snoring group (SSN, average AHI $5.9{\pm}4.4$) and 32 OSA group (average AHI $47.3{\pm}23.9$). We compared split sleep variables between the first half and the second half of sleep within each group with paired t-test for the evaluation of asymmetry. Changes of sleep architecture of OSA were higher stage 1 sleep% (S1), total arousal index (TAI), AHI, and mean heart rate (HR) and lower stage 2 sleep% (S2), REM sleep%, and mean arterial O2 saturation (SaO2) than SSN subjects. SWS and wake time after sleep onset (WASO) were not different between two groups. In split-night analysis, OSA subjects showed higher S2, slow wave sleep% (SWS), spontaneous arousal index (SAI), and mean HR in the first half, and higher REM sleep% and mean SaO2 in the second half. Those were same pattern as in SSN subjects. Mean apnea duration and longest apnea duration were higher in the second half only in the OSA. No differences of AHI, ODI, WASO, and S1 were found between the first and the second half of sleep in both groups. TAI was higher in the first half only in the SSN. SWS and WASO seemed to be influenced sensitively by simple snoring as well as OSA. Unlike our hypothesis, asymmetric distributions of major sleep architecture variables were preserved in OSA group. Losing asymmetry of TAI might be related to pathophysiology of OSA. We need more studies that include large number of subjects in the future.

• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.21-27
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• 2010

Objectives: It is well established that primary insomnia affects the activity of autonomic nervous system. We tried to know how the activity of autonomic nervous system during night sleep changes by analyzing correlation between heart rate variability (HRV) index and the variables related with sleep structure in primary insomnia. Methods: Thirty three subjects (mean age: $36.2{\pm}14.2$ years, male:female=15:18) who were diagnosed with primary insomnia were selected for the study. Nocturnal polysomnography (NPSG) was carried out on each subject and correlation was analyzed between high frequency/low frequency ratio (LF/HF ratio), one of HRV indices and the variables related with sleep structure which were calculated from NPSG. Results: When age and sex were controlled, LF/HF ratio showed negative correlations with slow wave sleep and stage 2 sleep, respectively ($r_p$=-0.43, p=0.01; $r_p$=-0.37, p=0.04). On the other hands LF/HF ratio showed a positive correlation with arousal index ($r_p$=0.65, p<0.001). The activity of autonomic nervous system responded differentially depending on the change of sleep structure in primary insomnia. Especially the increase of arousal index and the decrease of slow wave sleep and stage 2 sleep which are the components of non-REM sleep provoked hyperactivity of sympathetic nervous system. Conclusion: This study suggests that the typical change of sleep structure in primary insomnia can negatively impact on cardiovascular system.

• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.24-33
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• 2002

Objectives: Nasal continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) corrected elevated blood pressure (BP) in some studies of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) but not in others. Such inconsistent results in previous studies might be due to differences in factors influencing the effects of CPAP on BP. The factors referred to include BP monitoring techniques, the characteristics of subjects, and method of CPAP application. Therefore, we evaluated the effects of one night CPAP application on BP and heart rate (HR) reactivity using non-invasive beat-to-beat BP measurement in normotensive and hypertensive subjects with OSAS. Methods: Finger arterial BP and oxygen saturation monitoring with nocturnal polysomnography were performed on 10 OSAS patients (mean age $52.2{\pm}12.4\;years$; 9 males, 1 female; respiratory disturbance index (RDI)>5) for one baseline night and another CPAP night. Beat-to-beat measurement of BP and HR was done with finger arterial BP monitor ($Finapres^{(R)}$) and mean arterial oxygen saturation ($SaO_2$) was also measured at 2-second intervals for both nights. We compared the mean values of cardiovascular and respiratory variables between baseline and CPAP nights using Wilcoxon signed ranks test. Delta ($\Delta$) BP, defined as the subtracted value of CPAP night BP from baseline night BP, was correlated with age, body mass index (BMI), baseline night values of BP, BP variability, HR, HR variability, mean $SaO_2$ and respiratory disturbance index (RDI), and CPAP night values of TWT% (total wake time%) and CPAP pressure, using Spearman's correlation. Results: 1) Although increase of mean $SaO_2$ (p<.01) and decrease of RDI (p<.01) were observed on the CPAP night, there were no significant differences in other variables between two nights. 2) However, delta BP tended to increase or decease depending on BP values of the baseline night and age. Delta systolic BP and baseline systolic BP showed a significant positive correlation (p<.01), but delta diastolic BP and baseline diastolic BP did not show a significant correlation except for a positive correlation in wake stage (p<.01). Delta diastolic BP and age showed a significant negative correlation (p<.05) during all stages except for REM stage, but delta systolic BP and age did not. 3) Delta systolic and diastolic BPs did not significantly correlate with other factors, such as BMI, baseline night values of BP variability, HR, HR variability, mean SaO2 and RDI, and CPAP night values of TWT% and CPAP pressure, except for a positive correlation of delta diastolic pressure and TWT% of CPAP night (p<.01). Conclusions: We observed that systolic BP and diastolic BP tended to decrease, increase or remain still in accordance with the systolic BP level of baseline night and aging. We suggest that BP reactivity by CPAP be dealt with as a complex phenomenon rather than a simple undifferentiated BP decrease.

• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.52-60
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• 2003

Objectives: Stage 1 sleep provides important information regarding interpretation of nocturnal polysomnography, particularly sleep onset. It is a short transition period from wakeful consciousness to sleep. The lack of prominent sleep events characterizing stage 1 sleep is a major obstacle in automatic sleep stage scoring. In this study, utilization of simultaneous EEG and EOG processing and analyses to detect stage 1 sleep automatically were attempted. Methods: Relative powers of the alpha waves and the theta waves were calculated from spectral estimation. A relative power of alpha waves less than 50% or relative power of theta waves more than 23% was regarded as stage 1 sleep. SEM(slow eye movement) was defined as the duration of both-eye movement ranging from 1.5 to 4 seconds, and was also regarded as stage 1 sleep. If one of these three criteria was met, the epoch was regarded as stage 1 sleep. Results were compared to the manual rating results done by two polysomnography experts. Results: A total of 169 epochs were analyzed. The agreement rate for stage 1 sleep between automatic detection and manual scoring was 79.3% and Cohen’s Kappa was 0.586 (p<0.01). A significant portion (32%) of automatically detected stage 1 sleep included SEM. Conclusion: Generally, digitally-scored sleep staging shows accuracy up to 70%. Considering potential difficulty in stage 1 sleep scoring, accuracy of 79.3% in this study seems to be strong enough. Simultaneous analysis of EOG differentiates this study from previous ones which mainly depended on EEG analysis. The issue of close relationship between SEM and stage 1 sleep raised by Kinnari remains a valid one in this study.

• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.107-112
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• 2001

Introduction: Narcolepsy, a sleep disorder characterized by excessive daytime sleepiness and cataplexy, is known to be closely associated with the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) DQB1*0602. Several studies have suggested that HLA-DQB1*0602 is strongly linked with narcolepsy-cataplexy. However, no studies have yet been made on whether HLA DQB1*0602 is associated with Korean patients with narcolepsy. This study was designed to investigate the frequency of HLA-DQB1*0602 of Korean patients with narcolepsy. Methods: Twenty patients were selected (mean age: $28.2{\pm}3.0$, 11 men and 9 women). The patients were confirmed to have narcolepsy by the overnight polysomnography and multiple sleep latency test (MSLT) in addition to their clinical history and symptoms at St. Vincent's Hospital and Korea University Hospital Sleep Disorders Clinic. Any subjects co-morbid with other hypersomnic sleep disorders such as sleep apnea or periodic limb movements during sleep were excluded. Clinical data was collected through a semi-structured interview for narcoleptic patients. All patients and 21 control did HLA typing for the presence of DQB1*0602. Results Obtained were as Follows: 1) Mean sleep latency was 2.4 (${\pm}2.0$ minutes) and mean frequency of sleep-onset REM period was 3.0 (${\pm}1.6$) by MSLT. 2) Characteristic symptoms of narcolepsy investigated were as follows: excessive daytime sleepiness (100%), cataplexy (100%), sleep paralysis (60%), hypnagogic hallucination (70%) and disrupted nocturnal sleep (75%). 3) Strong emotional expression such as laughing (80%) and joking (70%) triggered cataplexy which affects the knee and leg region (80%) and jaw region (30%). 4) HLA-DR2 was found in 90% of patients and 35% in controls. The frequency of HLA-DQB1*0602 in patients and controls was 90%, and 24%, respectively. Conclusions: These results, which exhibit high HLA-DQB1*0602 expression in Korean patients with narcolepsy, suggest that HLADQB1*0602 could be a strong genetic marker in narcolepsy.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.11-19
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• 2004

Stage 1 sleep provides important information regarding interpretation of nocturnal polysomnography, particularly sleep onset. It is a short transition period from wakeful consciousness to sleep. Lack of prominent sleep events characterizing stage 1 sleep is a major obstacle in automatic sleep stage scoring. In this study, we attempted to utilize simultaneous EEC and EOG processing and analyses to detect stage 1 sleep automatically. Relative powers of the alpha waves and the theta waves were calculated from spectral estimation. Either the relative power of alpha waves less than 50％ or the relative power of theta waves more than 23％ was regarded as stage 1 sleep. SEM (slow eye movement) was defined as the duration of both eye movement ranging from 1.5 to 4 seconds and regarded also as stage 1 sleep. If one of these three criteria was met, the epoch was regarded as stage 1 sleep. Results f ere compared to the manual rating results done by two polysomnography experts. Total of 169 epochs was analyzed. Agreement rate for stage 1 sleep between automatic detection and manual scoring was 79.3％ and Cohen's Kappa was 0.586 (p＜0.01). A significant portion (32％) of automatically detected stage 1 sleep included SEM. Generally, digitally-scored sleep s1aging shows the accuracy up to 70％. Considering potential difficulties in stage 1 sleep scoring, the accuracy of 79.3％ in this study seems to be robust enough. Simultaneous analysis of EOG provides differential value to the present study from previous oneswhich mainly depended on EEG analysis. The issue of close relationship between SEM and stage 1 sleep raised by Kinnariet at. remains to be a valid one in this study.

• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.87-94
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• 2011

Objective: OSAS (obstructive sleep apnea syndrome) is a common disorder and its consequences are often serious. It is important to detect the disorder early in the course for proper treatment. This study is to grasp the snoring clinic visitors' knowledge level of OSAS. Method: One hundred and seventy-nine visitors at the of snoring clinic of Seoul National University Hospital were surveyed by questionnaire about reasons of visit and knowledge of treatment methods of snoring and OSAS, diagnostic method, OSAS-related symptoms, and complications. Results: Most of the respondents (89.4%) "have already heard about OSAS" and the major sources of information was the mass media (58.1%) such as television and radio. More than half (60.3%) were aware that snoring is closely related to OSAS. More than half (59.8%) recognized that a nocturnal polysomnograpy was necessary for proper diagnosis. Two thirds (67%) of the respondents noted surgery as a treatment for snoring. More than half (55.9%) answered that they would follow the doctor's advice on the treatment choice. Only 12.3% of respondents "have heard about nCPAP". No one chose nCPAP (nasal continuous positive airway pressure) as a treatment for either snoring or OSAS. About one third (34.6%) of the respondents were aware that OSAS is related to hypertension. Only 12.8% noted that OSAS is related to diabetes mellitus. Conclusion: Visitors at the snoring clinic were found to have substantially limited knowledge of health risks and proper treatments of OSAS. We suggest that it is crucially important to educate patients and offer easy-to-understand information on snoring and OSAS. We predict that provision of educaiton and information to patients and general public will faciliate the diagnosis and treatment of snoring and OSAS and reduce the related disorders such as hypertension, stroke, and diabetes mellitus.

• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.121-128
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• 2001

Objectives: In narcoleptic patients diagnosed with ICSD (international classification of sleep disorders, 1990) criteria, nocturnal polysomnography, and MSLT (multiple sleep latency test), we tried to find characteristic features of quantitative electroencephalography (QEEG) in a wakeful state. Methods: We compared eight drug-free narcoleptic patients with sex- and age-matched normal controls, using computerized electroencephalographic mapping technique and spectral analysis. Absolute power, relative power, interhemispheric asymmetry, interhemispheric and intrahemispheric coherence, and mean frequency in each frequency band (delta, theta, alpha and beta) were measured and analyzed. Results: Compared with normal controls, narcoleptic patients showed decrease in monopolar interhemispheric coherence of alpha frequency bands in occipital ($O_1/O_2$), parietal ($P_3/P_4$), and temporal ($T_5/T_6$) areas and beta frequency band in the occipital ($O_1/O_2$) area. Monopolar intrahemispheric coherences of alpha frequency bands in left hemispheric areas ($T_3/T_5$, $C_3/P_3$ & $F_3/O_1$) decreased. Decrease of monopolar interhemispheric asymmetry of delta frequency band in the occipital ($O_1/O_2$) area was also noted. The monopolar absolute powers of beta frequency bands decreased in occipital ($O_2,\;O_z$) areas. Conclusion: Decreases in coherences of narcoleptic patients compared with normal controls may indicate fewer posterior neocortical interhemispheric neuronal connections, and fewer left intrahemispheric neuronal connections than normal controls in a wakeful state. Therefore, we suggest that abnormal neurophysiological sites of narcolepsy may involve complex areas such as neocortex and subcortex as well as the brainstem.