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Visual EEG differences in abstinent alcohol dependence and ethnicity
Sleep Medicine 7 (2006) 79–80 www.elsevier.com/locate/sleep
Images in sleep medicine
Visual EEG differences in abstinent alcohol dependence and ethnicity 1. Summary Two male alcohol-dependent patients were consented and admitted to the UCLA General Clinical Research Center as part of a sleep protocol following an abstinence period of more than 12 days, along with two ethnicity (African-American, Euro-American)-, gender- and age (46G3 years old)-matched controls. All four patients denied any history of head injury, epilepsy, or anoxia. A 2-week sleep log was kept, whereby sleep/wake patterns were similar in all subjects. Furthermore, each was screened and found to be free of apnea (AHI!10), PLMS (!10), depression (including a history of primary depression), viral infection (O2 weeks), and over-the-counter prescription medication for at least 1 month. The two alcohol-dependent patients met DSM-IV criteria for primary alcohol dependence, whereas the controls fulfilled criteria for ‘never mentally ill’. Following one night of adaptation, continuous all night polysomnography was recorded. Evidence of EEG
attenuation was found with absence of slow wave sleep (Stages 3 and 4) in both alcohol-dependent patients according to Rechtschaffen and Kales sleep-staging criteria. Moreover, this EEG degradation was further influenced by ethnicity, with greater declines in both African-American subjects as compared to the respective Euro-American control and alcohol-dependent subjects. Given these outcomes, Stage 2 sleep from the first half of the night is shown.
2. Image analysis Figs. 1 and 2. 3. Discussion 1. Head injury, epilepsy, anoxia, depression, and/or medication have been associated with EEG attenuation, yet this was not the case here [1,4].
Fig. 1. Euro-American (A) control vs. (B) alcoholic: comparison of Stage 2 EEG (C3-A1A2) at about the same time in the night, 1:30 a.m.
Fig. 2. African-American (A) control vs. (B) alcoholic: comparison of Stage 2 EEG (C3-A1A2) at about the same time in the night, 1:30 a.m. 1389-9457/$ - see front matter q 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.sleep.2005.08.011
80
Images in sleep medicine / Sleep Medicine 7 (2006) 79–80
2. Visually scored and spectral analyzed EEG attenuation has been implicated in alcohol dependence, with an increased significance in African-American as compared to Euro-American patients [2,3]. 3. Underlying mechanisms for EEG attenuation in AfricanAmericans is largely unknown [2]. 4. It is important to identify the various causes of EEG attenuation in order to provide the utmost treatment in sleep health care.
References [1] Benca RM, Obermeyer WH, Thisted RA, Gillin JD. Sleep in psychiatric disorders: a meta-analysis. Arch J Psychiatry 1992;49:651–68. [2] Irwin M, Gillin JC, Dang J, Weissman J, Phillips E, Ehlers CL. Sleep deprivation as a probe for homeostatic sleep regulation in primary alcoholics. Biol Psychiatry 2002;51:632–41. [3] Irwin M, Miller C, Gillin JC, Demodena A, Ehlers CL. Polysomnographic and spectral sleep EEG in primary alcoholics: an interaction between alcohol dependence and African—American ethnicity. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2000;24:1376–84.
* Corresponding author. Tel.: C1 310 825 8281; fax: C1 310 794 9247. 1 Tel.: C1 310 794 5239; fax: C1 310 794 9247.
[4] Thompson J, Sebastianelli W, Slobounov S. EEG and postural correlates of mild traumatic brain injury in athletes. Neurosci Lett 2005;377:158–63.
Edwin M. Valladaresa,1 Michael Irwinb,* a Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology, Neuropsychiatric Institute, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), 300 Medical Plaza, Suite 3-160, Los Angeles, CA 90095-7057, USA b Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology, Neuropsychiatric Institute, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), 300 Medical Plaza, Suite 3-109, Los Angeles, CA 90095-7057, USA E-mail addresses: [email protected], [email protected] Received 27 May 2005; Accepted 23 August 2005
Images in sleep medicine
Visual EEG differences in abstinent alcohol dependence and ethnicity 1. Summary Two male alcohol-dependent patients were consented and admitted to the UCLA General Clinical Research Center as part of a sleep protocol following an abstinence period of more than 12 days, along with two ethnicity (African-American, Euro-American)-, gender- and age (46G3 years old)-matched controls. All four patients denied any history of head injury, epilepsy, or anoxia. A 2-week sleep log was kept, whereby sleep/wake patterns were similar in all subjects. Furthermore, each was screened and found to be free of apnea (AHI!10), PLMS (!10), depression (including a history of primary depression), viral infection (O2 weeks), and over-the-counter prescription medication for at least 1 month. The two alcohol-dependent patients met DSM-IV criteria for primary alcohol dependence, whereas the controls fulfilled criteria for ‘never mentally ill’. Following one night of adaptation, continuous all night polysomnography was recorded. Evidence of EEG
attenuation was found with absence of slow wave sleep (Stages 3 and 4) in both alcohol-dependent patients according to Rechtschaffen and Kales sleep-staging criteria. Moreover, this EEG degradation was further influenced by ethnicity, with greater declines in both African-American subjects as compared to the respective Euro-American control and alcohol-dependent subjects. Given these outcomes, Stage 2 sleep from the first half of the night is shown.
2. Image analysis Figs. 1 and 2. 3. Discussion 1. Head injury, epilepsy, anoxia, depression, and/or medication have been associated with EEG attenuation, yet this was not the case here [1,4].
Fig. 1. Euro-American (A) control vs. (B) alcoholic: comparison of Stage 2 EEG (C3-A1A2) at about the same time in the night, 1:30 a.m.
Fig. 2. African-American (A) control vs. (B) alcoholic: comparison of Stage 2 EEG (C3-A1A2) at about the same time in the night, 1:30 a.m. 1389-9457/$ - see front matter q 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.sleep.2005.08.011
80
Images in sleep medicine / Sleep Medicine 7 (2006) 79–80
2. Visually scored and spectral analyzed EEG attenuation has been implicated in alcohol dependence, with an increased significance in African-American as compared to Euro-American patients [2,3]. 3. Underlying mechanisms for EEG attenuation in AfricanAmericans is largely unknown [2]. 4. It is important to identify the various causes of EEG attenuation in order to provide the utmost treatment in sleep health care.
References [1] Benca RM, Obermeyer WH, Thisted RA, Gillin JD. Sleep in psychiatric disorders: a meta-analysis. Arch J Psychiatry 1992;49:651–68. [2] Irwin M, Gillin JC, Dang J, Weissman J, Phillips E, Ehlers CL. Sleep deprivation as a probe for homeostatic sleep regulation in primary alcoholics. Biol Psychiatry 2002;51:632–41. [3] Irwin M, Miller C, Gillin JC, Demodena A, Ehlers CL. Polysomnographic and spectral sleep EEG in primary alcoholics: an interaction between alcohol dependence and African—American ethnicity. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2000;24:1376–84.
* Corresponding author. Tel.: C1 310 825 8281; fax: C1 310 794 9247. 1 Tel.: C1 310 794 5239; fax: C1 310 794 9247.
[4] Thompson J, Sebastianelli W, Slobounov S. EEG and postural correlates of mild traumatic brain injury in athletes. Neurosci Lett 2005;377:158–63.
Edwin M. Valladaresa,1 Michael Irwinb,* a Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology, Neuropsychiatric Institute, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), 300 Medical Plaza, Suite 3-160, Los Angeles, CA 90095-7057, USA b Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology, Neuropsychiatric Institute, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), 300 Medical Plaza, Suite 3-109, Los Angeles, CA 90095-7057, USA E-mail addresses: [email protected], [email protected] Received 27 May 2005; Accepted 23 August 2005