Sleep continuity, stability and organization in good and bad sleepers.

Abstract

The relationship between objective and subjective sleep quality is still debated. Here we investigate differences in objective sleep parameters in habitual subjective good (GS) and bad sleepers (BS) with the aim of evaluating sleep continuity, stability and organization as possible determinants of subjective sleep quality. Thirty-eight subjects (GS, N=18; BS, N=20), underwent two nights of sleep recording. Traditional sleep parameters displayed no between-groups differences. Conversely, BS showed lower sleep continuity (awakenings frequency), stability (e.g., arousals and state transitions frequency) and organization (e.g., number of sleep cycles, Time spent in Cycles). Our findings point to the involvement of these measures in determining habitual sleep quality perception and suggest the possibility to include them in standard sleep assessments