title: Sleep fragmentation and evidence for sleep debt in alcohol-exposed infants.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Infants exposed prenatally to alcohol are at increased risk for poor neurodevelopmental outcome including Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To examine the relationship between prenatal alcohol exposure, sleep, arousal and sleep-related spontaneous motor movements in early infancy.
  
  
  METHODS
  Low-income women (N=13) were interviewed regarding pre- and pregnancy rates of alcohol, cigarette smoking and other substance use in the perinatal period. Infants were examined in a laboratory nap study using EEG, videography and actigraphy at 6-8 weeks of age. Estimates of maternal pre- and pregnancy alcohol use were used to divide infants into high vs. low maternal alcohol use groups.
  
  
  METHODS
  Mother-infant dyads recruited from a family practice clinic.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sleep-related spontaneous movements, behavioral state, and maternal assessments of infant alertness and irritability.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Pre-pregnancy rates of alcohol consumption including binge drinking correlated with maternal report of poor infant alertness, and increased irritability. High maternal exposure groups showed increased sleep fragmentation, e.g., frequency and duration of wakefulness following sleep onset and decreased active sleep. Bout analysis of the temporal structure of sleep-related spontaneous movements showed significantly reduced bout duration associated with high maternal alcohol use.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results present evidence that prenatal alcohol exposure disrupts postnatal sleep organization and suppresses spontaneous movements during sleep, and increased sleep fragmentation promotes sleep deprivation. Results are consistent with the SIDS model of chronic sleep debt and suggest that attenuated sleep-related movements should be examined as an important modulator of cardiorespiratory functions during sleep in high-risk groups.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA.
authors.forename: Marcia
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Troese
authors.forename: Michio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fukumizu
authors.forename: Bethany J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Sallinen
authors.forename: Allyson A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Gilles
authors.forename: Joseph D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Wellman
authors.forename: Jonathan A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Paul
authors.forename: Eric R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: Marie J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Hayes
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000009:adverse effects*; D000431:Ethanol / Q000506:poisoning*; D005260:Female; D005323:Fetal Monitoring; D005324:Fetal Movement / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D018811:Maternal Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects; D010349:Patient Compliance; D011247:Pregnancy; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012309:Risk-Taking; D012890:Sleep / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D012892:Sleep Deprivation / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology
chemical_list: D000431:Ethanol