Positron Emission Tomography Correlates of Visually-Scored Electroencephalographic Waveforms During Non-Rapid Eye Movement Sleep

Abstract

Visually-scored, non-Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep electroencephalographic (EEG) waveform activity for each 30-s sleep scored epoch—including the number of sleep spindles, the number of K-complexes, and the percentage of delta waves occupying the epoch—was correlated with H₂¹⁵O positron emission tomography. Sleep spindle correlations included positive correlations in the thalamus and right hippocampus. K-complex correlations included positive correlations in the frontomedian prefrontal cortex and cerebellum. Delta wave correlations included negative correlations in the thalamus, frontomedian prefrontal cortex, dorsal pons, and primary visual cortex. Each pattern of correlations may suggest a functional significance for these waveforms that relates to a waking outcome.

Keywords:

• delta waves/slow waves
• electroencephalography
• K-complexes
• positron emission tomography
• sleep
• sleep spindles