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Trigeminal induced arousals during human sleep

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Abstract

Background

Arousals caused by external stimuli during human sleep have been studied for most of the sensorial systems. It could be shown that a pure nasal trigeminal stimulus leads to arousals during sleep. The frequency of arousals increases dependent on the stimulus concentration. The aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of different stimulus durations on arousal frequency during different sleep stages.

Methods

Ten young healthy volunteers with 20 nights of polysomnography were included in the study. Pure trigeminal stimulation with both different concentrations of CO2 (0, 10, 20, 40 % v/v) and different stimulus durations (1, 3, 5, and 10 s) were applied during different sleep stages to the volunteers using an olfactometer. The application was performed during different sleep stages (light sleep, deep sleep, REM sleep).

Results

The number of arousals increased with rising stimulus duration and stimulus concentration during each sleep stage.

Conclusion

Trigeminal stimuli during sleep led to arousals in dose- and time-dependent manner.

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Acknowledgments

The study was supported by a grant from the German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft STU 488/2-1).

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital Mannheim, Theodor-Kutzer-Ufer 1-3, 68167, Mannheim, Germany

    Clemens Heiser, Jan Baja, Franziska Lenz, J. Ulrich Sommer, Karl Hörmann & Boris A. Stuck

  2. Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Technische Universität München, Ismaninger Str. 22, 81675, Munich, Germany

    Clemens Heiser

  3. Mannheim Institute of Public Health, Social and Preventive Medicine, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany

    Raphael M. Herr

Authors
  1. Clemens Heiser
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  2. Jan Baja
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  3. Franziska Lenz
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  4. J. Ulrich Sommer
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  5. Karl Hörmann
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  6. Raphael M. Herr
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  7. Boris A. Stuck
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Correspondence to Clemens Heiser.

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Heiser, C., Baja, J., Lenz, F. et al. Trigeminal induced arousals during human sleep. Sleep Breath 19, 553–560 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325-014-1046-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325-014-1046-1

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