Stanford Sleepiness Research Articles

Relationship between fatigue and sleepiness with general health of mothers in the postpartum period.

Background:Fatigue and changes in sleep patterns are one of the impressive features in the first year after birth, which have negative effects on work, family life, and social relationships. Therefore, the objective of this research was to investigate the relationship between fatigue and Stanford sleepiness with the general health of mothers in the postpartum period.Materials and Methods:The current research is a descriptive correlational study which was performed on 190 mothers between 2 and 24 postpartum weeks, referring to the health centers of Isfahan in 2014. All mothers meeting the inclusion criteria were selected through cluster purposive sampling. Data were collected by use of four questionnaires including profile and fertility, fatigue, Stanford sleepiness, and general health. Data were analyzed by statistical tests at a significance level of ≤0.05.Results:The results showed that 5.3%, 59.5%, and 35.3% of subjects had mild, moderate, and severe fatigue, respectively. In addition, 26.3% of women showed a public health disorder, and according to Stanford sleepiness, 20.5% of subjects had sleepiness. The statistical results indicated that there were significant relationships between fatigue (P ≤ 0.001, r = 0.52) and Stanford sleepiness (P = 0.04, r = 0.14), and mothers’ general health.Conclusions:According to prevalence of fatigue and sleepiness in the postpartum period and its relationship with maternal health, application of sleep health education and appropriate counseling during pregnancy and after delivery is recommended to prevent mothers’ mental complications in order to achieve a safe pregnancy.

Brain histamine H1 receptor occupancy measured by PET after oral administration of levocetirizine, a non-sedating antihistamine

Objective: Histamine H1 receptor (H1R) antagonists often have sedative side effects, which are caused by the blockade of the neural transmission of the histaminergic neurons. We examined the brain H1R occupancy (H1RO) and the subjective sleepiness of levocetirizine, a new second-generation antihistamine, comparing fexofenadine, another non-sedating antihistamine, as a negative active control.Methods: Eight healthy volunteers underwent positron emission tomography (PET) imaging with [11C]doxepin, a PET tracer that specifically binds to H1Rs, after a single oral administration of levocetirizine (5 mg), fexofenadine (60 mg) or placebo in a double-blind crossover study. Binding potential ratios and H1ROs in the cerebral cortices regions were calculated using placebo. Subjective sleepiness was assessed with the Line Analogue Rating Scale and the Stanford Sleepiness Scale.Results: There was no significant difference between the mean brain H1RO after levocetirizine administration (8.1%; 95% CI: −9.8 to 26.0%) and fexofenadine administration (−8.0%; 95% CI: −26.7 to 10.6%). Similarly, subjective sleepiness was not significantly different between the two antihistamines and placebo. Neither subjective sleepiness nor plasma concentrations was significantly correlated with the brain H1RO of the two antihistamines.Conclusion: At therapeutic dose, levocetirizine does not bind significantly to the brain H1Rs and does not induce significant sedation.

Sleepiness in Medical ICU Residents

Sleepiness in medical residents has crucial implications for the safety of both patients and residents. Measures to improve this have primarily included an Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education-mandated reduction in work hours in residency programs. The impact of these work-hour limitations has not been consistent. The purpose of this study was to provide an objective assessment of daytime sleepiness in medical residents working in the medical ICU. Sleep times for 2 days/nights prior to on call and on the day/night of being on call were assessed by actigraphy and sleep diaries. On-call and post-call measurements of residents' sleepiness were measured both objectively, by means of a modified multiple sleep latency test (MSLT) [two nap sessions], as well as subjectively, by the Stanford Sleepiness Scale. Our data showed that despite an average sleep time of 7.15 h on nights leading to being on call, the mean sleep latency (MSL) on the on-call day was (+/- SD) 9 +/- 4.4 min, and 4.8 +/- 4.1 min (p < 0.001) on the post-call day. On the post-call day, 14 residents (70%) had an MSL of < 5 min, suggesting severe sleepiness, compared to 6 residents (30%) on the on-call day. Our results demonstrate that residents working in the ICU despite reductions in work hours demonstrate severe degree of sleepiness post-call.