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Distal skin vasodilation promotes rapid sleep onset in preterm neonates
Author(s) -
Barcat Lucile,
Decima Pauline,
Bodin Emilie,
Delanaud Stephane,
StephanBlanchard Erwan,
Leke Andre,
Libert JeanPierre,
Tourneux Pierre,
Bach Veronique
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
journal of sleep research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.297
H-Index - 117
eISSN - 1365-2869
pISSN - 0962-1105
DOI - 10.1111/jsr.12514
Subject(s) - medicine , polysomnography , anesthesia , sleep (system call) , wakefulness , neonatal intensive care unit , pediatrics , electroencephalography , apnea , psychiatry , computer science , operating system
Summary Although sleep is of paramount importance for preterm neonates, care of the latter in a neonatal intensive care unit does not favour sleep. Given that several studies in adults have described a ‘vegetative preparedness to sleep’ (in which distal skin vasodilation before lights‐out promotes rapid sleep onset), we looked at whether or not this process operates in preterm neonates. Sleep propensity was assessed in terms of the duration of a spontaneous episode of wakefulness (W). Skin temperatures at six body sites (the abdomen, pectoral region, eye, hand, thigh and foot) were measured (using infrared thermography) during nocturnal polysomnography in 29 9‐day‐old preterm neonates (postmenstrual age: 209 ± 9 days). We then determined whether the duration of the W episode depended upon the local skin temperatures measured at the start, during and end of the episode. The W episode was shorter when distal skin temperatures (thigh, hand and foot) and the pectoral temperature were higher at the end of the episode (i.e. at sleep onset). The relationship with the duration of the W episode was not significant for temperatures measured at the start of the W episode. We observed gradual distal vasodilation at the pectoral region, the thigh, hand and foot (i.e. affecting most of the body's skin surface) during W episodes. Our results constitute initial evidence to show that distal vasodilation may have a key role in facilitating sleep onset in very preterm neonates.