Design of a data-acquisition system for monitoring sleep organization in preterm infants.
A portable data-acquisition system suitable for long-term noninvasive monitoring of physiologic and behavioral variables in preterm infants is described. The system includes two video cameras, a video screen-splitter and amplifier, a time-lapse video recorder, a microphone, a force-responsive transducer, an analog signal conditioner, and two microcomputers. One microcomputer, located in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) acquires electrophysiologic signals and preprocesses data in real time, during a continuous 48-hour session. After each session, the data file is transferred by telephone line to the other microcomputer, located in a laboratory, for editing, reduction, display, and final analysis. This arrangement enables noninvasive and nonintrusive monitoring, which is crucial for long-term recording of sleep-wake state organization of preterm infants.
Drakulic
B S
BS
Electrical Engineering Department, University of California, Los Angeles 90024.
Garbanati
J A
JA
Gold
M N
MN
D003199:Computer Systems; D004562:Electrocardiography; D004867:Equipment Design; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature / Q000502:physiology*; D007363:Intensive Care Units, Neonatal; D008838:Microcomputers; D008991:Monitoring, Physiologic / Q000295:instrumentation*; D012815:Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted; D012890:Sleep / Q000502:physiology*; D014741:Video Recording