When a person is sleeping in a sleep laboratory he is hooked up to a number of machines that measure a number of bodily functions. These include the EEG and EOG. A further recording is made by an EMG or electromyogram which is attached to the chin to determine muscle tension. In some situations in men, the circumference of the penis is also monitored. It has been discovered that during REM sleep there are a lot of physiological changes, including male erection—more about that in chapter on Sex and Dreams.

The Sleep Disorder Unit at Epworth Hospital, Melbourne has the most advanced equipment and, in addition to the above measurements, the patient is monitored for many other important bodily functions also. These include air flow through the mouth and nose, the movement of the chest during respiration, blood oxygen saturation (by means of an oximeter in the finger), snoring (by recording the noise level in the room), the condition of the heart (electrocardiogram), and individual leg movement. All these activities are computed at real time and organized on a video screen. The amount and frequency of the brain waves are analysed by computer and displayed in different colours on a separate screen which gives a clear indication of which stage of sleep the patient is in. The patient is also observed from the control room with and is continuously recorded on video.

This kind of multiple recording in the sleep laboratory is called a polysomnogram, and operates as long as the person is asleep. The recordings can then be analysed the next day and the results used in the diagnosis and treatment of impotence, sleep apnoea and other sleep disorders. There are now as many as 50 sleep aisorae thanks to the sleep laboratory.

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Related Posts:

• DREAMS AND PHILOSOPHY
• SLEEP: NORMAL AWAKENING . NATURAL INSOMNIA WITH AGE
• SLEEP LABORATORY: BRAIN WAVES
• WHY SLEEP?

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