title: EEG effects of a single low dose of ethanol on afternoon sleep in the nonalcohol-dependent adult.
abstract: Three polygraphic recordings (PGR) of afternoon sleep (ANS) related to the duration of one sleep cycle, i.e., 90 min, were performed in 14 healthy adult volunteers (7 men and 7 women): two reference PGR, on two consecutive days (before ingestion of alcohol). Only the second being retained: reference PGR = P1; another recording, on day 3, 50 min after the start of single slow oral ingestion of the equivalent of 0.25 g 95% ethyl alcohol (ETOH) per kg body weight. Alcohol was ingested as 40 degrees whiskey, and the volume administered ranged from 34.5 to 66 ml (ETOH polygraphic recording = P2). Analysis of polygraphic traces was carried out according to the criteria of Rechtschaffen and Kales, and results were presented using the parameters adopted by Gross et al. (2). A single low dose of alcohol, leading to a low mean blood alcohol level (below 30 mg/100 ml, range 9 to 29 mg/100 ml), clearly perturbs sleep in the normal nonalcohol-dependent adult. In this context, ETOH does not appear to be a hypnotic since: a) the latencies to onset of sleep and the appearance of stages II, III, and IV of slow-wave sleep (SWS) are not shortened; b) the total duration of sleep, the percentage of delta sleep, and the duration (and percentage) of rapid eye movement sleep (REMS) are decreased; c) the number, duration, and percentages of intrasleep awakenings are increased, as are the number of stage changes. In addition, the study of afternoon sleep has shown itself to be a sensitive and reliable test for the analysis of the effects of a low dose of alcohol on nonalcohol-dependent subjects.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Neuroendocrinologie, Département de Physiologie Humaine, UER Biomedicale des Saints-Pères, Paris, France.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rouhani
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Tran
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Leplaideur
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Durlach
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Poenaru
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004569:Electroencephalography; D000431:Ethanol / Q000097:blood / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012890:Sleep / Q000187:drug effects*; D012895:Sleep, REM / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D000431:Ethanol