0137 The Falling Asleep Process in Adolescents

Abstract

Introduction: Elevated bedtime psychophysiological activation interferes with the way people fall asleep and sleep. The falling asleep is an overlooked phenomenon, particularly relevant in the pathophysiology of insomnia. Insomnia disorder shows a profound sex difference in its prevalence, which emerges during adolescence. Greater vulnerability to insomnia in the female sex may be reflected in the manifestation of hyperarousal, particularly around sleep onset. Here, we compared the psychophysiology of the falling asleep process in adolescent boys and girls. Method(s): 102 healthy adolescents (12-20y, 54 female) from the National Consortium on Alcohol and Neurodevelopment in Adolescence (NCANDA) SRI cohort underwent in-lab polysomnography (PSG). Cognitive (pre-sleep arousal scale), cortical (electroencephalographic, EEG) and cardiac (heart rate) arousal measures were analyzed before and across the wake-to-sleep transition (5min before and after sleep onset). Result(s): Approaching sleep onset was associated with a pronounced increase in EEG Delta and Theta power, while EEG Alpha, Sigma, and Beta power, as well as heart rate gradually dropped (p