title: Activity, arousal, and the MSLT in patients with insomnia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  It has recently been shown that physiological arousal following walking increased sleep latencies during daytime naps as compared to sleep latencies following TV viewing. Patients with insomnia have been shown to have increased physiological arousal and to also have longer MSLT latencies. It was hypothesized that insomnia patients, who are at a higher state of physiological arousal, would be unable to relax while lying in bed and watching TV and therefore would have relatively longer sleep latencies in naps following TV watching (due to inability to relax) as compared to walking.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twelve patients with psychophysiological insomnia took Multiple Sleep Latency Tests after either watching television for 15 minutes or after a 5-minute walk following baseline, sleep deprivation, and recovery sleep conditions.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sleep Laboratory
  
  
  METHODS
  Twelve patients with psychophysiological insomnia
  
  
  METHODS
  Manipulation of state arousal and sleep deprivation
  
  
  RESULTS
  Sleep latencies were significantly longer following the walk as compared to watching TV (11.9 vs. 6.9 min. respectively). Sleep latencies were 13.4 and 3.8 min. following baseline and sleep deprivation conditions. Heart period, used as a measure of physiological arousal, was significantly elevated throughout naps following the walk as compared to naps following TV viewing. Heart period was also significantly correlated with nap sleep latency.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The insomnia patients in this study had significantly increased arousal, as measured by heart rate, and significantly longer sleep latencies after walking as compared to resting. The magnitude of these changes was similar to that seen in normal subjects in a previous study. These data, in concert with previous work, support the contention that measured sleep tendency is a combination of sleep drive and level of central nervous system arousal, where arousal has both state and trait components.
authors.affiliation: Dayton Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Wright State University, and Kettering Medical Center, OH 45428, USA. Bonnet.Michael@DAYTON.VA.GOV
authors.forename: M H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Bonnet
authors.forename: D L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Arand
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001143:Arousal / Q000502:physiology*; D002940:Circadian Rhythm / Q000502:physiology; D004562:Electrocardiography; D004576:Electromyography; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*; D012146:Rest / Q000502:physiology; D012892:Sleep Deprivation; D007319:Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D012895:Sleep, REM / Q000502:physiology*; D014851:Wakefulness / Q000502:physiology; D016138:Walking / Q000502:physiology