The effects of sleep deprivation on attentional vigilance and resting-state electroencephalography

Abstract

Sleep deprivation has been associated with poor vigilance performance. Previous studies have demonstrated performance decrements on the psychomotor vigilance task (PVT) and changes to resting-state EEG (rEEG) power. This study was designed to link diminished vigilance with rEEG after sleep deprivation to identify underlying mechanisms. In this study, rEEG and the 10-minute PVT were used after a full night's sleep or sleep deprivation. Absolute alpha power decreased when eyes were closed for the sleep deprivation condition, but not for the sleep condition. Furthermore, the response times on the PVT increased following sleep deprivation, but not after a normal night of sleep. Interestingly, no correlation was observed between the PVT and changes to rEEG spectral power. These findings suggest that the impairment in vigilance following sleep deprivation may not be directly tied to changes in rEEG spectral power. The findings are discussed within the context of contemporary theories of sleep deprivation.