0271 Patterned Planar Bed Surface Vibration Is Effective in Shortening Time to Onset of Sleep (As Good as a Sleeping Pill?)

Abstract

Abstract Introduction 70 million Americans suffer from poor sleep, 42 million have a chronic sleep disorder, and an estimated 64% report regularly taking a pharmacological sleep aid regularly with well-known risks. A link between vibration and sleep was first observed during investigations of highway hypnosis. We developed a prototype bed producing sub-audible, tactilely perceptible traveling-wave vibration where noninvasive sleep monitors could objectively measure sleep. Methods A bed was outfitted with low-frequency effectors (LFEs) and phasers to create infrasonic, low-frequency vibration that traversed the mattress in patterns. Amplitude was adjusted to comfort using a bedside dial. Sleep was monitored over four sequential weeks in a single 22-year-old healthy male subject with 3 devices each employing a unique mechanism: the OuraRing (actigraphy), Google NestHub (GHz radar chip), and SleepScore (ultrasound). No vibration was used during weeks 1 and 4 to establish a baseline/return to baseline. Week 2 vibration was a highly periodic waveform (25 Hz, migrating at 1 Hz), while week 3 vibration was an irregular, chaotic waveform. Objective data was collected from the 3 devices to plot total sleep duration and latency of onset. Results 1. Strong agreement was seen among the 3 different sensors 2. Patterned, highly periodic, low-frequency vibration shortened sleep latency by nearly 50% consistently for one week (from 15 to 8 minutes) 3. Chaotic, irregular vibration of week 3 also shortened latency, but less so (from 15 to 12 minutes) 4. Baseline and repeat baseline were statistically nearly identical 5. Sleep duration was not impacted by vibration (mean 7 hours 45 minutes) Conclusion The primary mechanism of improved latency with vibration may be somatic/mental distraction. The subject reported that vibration diverted away from pre-occupying thoughts and was highly pleasant. These observations were reflected in nearly 50% reduction of latency in week 2 and more modest reduction in week 3. Patterned planar vibration appears as effective as prescribed sleep medications, suggesting it may be a useful non-pharmacologic sleep adjunct. Support (if any) Jacob Bentley is the recipient of scholarship support for this research from the American Medical Association and AASM.