Project - "Local Sleep" in the Awake Brain: An Underlying Cause of Neurobehavioural Deficits in Sleep Apnea?
All Chief investigators and associate investigators
Co-Principal Investigators: Professor Ronald Grunstein & Doctor Angela D'Rozario, CIA: Professor Ronald Grunstein, CIB: Doctor Angela D'Rozario, CIC: Doctor Craig Phillips, CID: Associate Professor Keith Wong, CIE: Doctor Camilla Hoyos, CIF: Professor Sharon Naismith, CIG: Doctor Andrew Vakulin, CIH: Associate Professor Danny Eckert
Research Project Abstract
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) which affects up to 50% of the middle-aged population, involves frequent periods of obstructed breathing, intermittent hypoxia and arousal from sleep. Up to 20% of OSA patients suffer from excessive daytime sleepiness and many report other adverse neurobehavioral effects including inattention and poor concentration which increase the risk of for motor vehicle accidents. Currently there are no accurate methods for discriminating inter-individual vulnerability for accidents, inattention and sleepiness.
This project incorporates detailed multi-site electrode analysis of brain activity using novel high-density electroencephalography (hdEEG) technology. HdEEG will allow us to determine whether tightly grouped populations of ‘tired’ neurons that appear to fall asleep in the awake brain underlie poor driving performance in OSA.
NHMRC Project Grant APP1144601, 2018-2020
Disease area:
Sleep disorders
Challenges within the field
Results from this project will greatly enhance our understanding of mechanisms underpinning performance deficits in OSA and guide future research into alternative therapies that protect the brain from neural injury which could reduce the heightened risk for dementia in this population.
Research Project Description
Patients with moderate to severe OSA who perform poorly on a driving simulator task will use therapeutic and sham (placebo) continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment throughout sleep for three nights each in random order. This study design will allow us to explore in detail, the relationship between changes in driving performance and simultaneous local sleep intrusion in the presence or absence of OSA.
Research Objectives
- To examine whether 3 nights without OSA will reduce the intensity of local sleep intrusions and improve driving performance and attention relative to 3 nights with OSA in an randomised controlled trial.
- To assess long-term changes in outcomes after 6 months of therapeutic CPAP.