Department of Basic Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland; Institut du Cerveau (Paris Brain Institute), Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle Épinière (ICM), Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Sorbonne Université, Paris 75013, France.
Neuropsychology and Functional Neuroimaging Research Group (UR2NF), Center for Research in Cognition and Neurosciences (CRCN), Université Libre de Bruxelles, B-1050 Brussels, Belgium; Departments of Neurology, Psychiatry, and Sleep Medicine, Hôpital Universitaire de Bruxelles, Site Erasme, Université Libre de Bruxelles, B-1070 Brussels, Belgium.
Trends Neurosci. 2024 Apr;47(4):273-288. doi: 10.1016/j.tins.2024.02.002. Epub 2024 Mar 21.
Sleep is crucial for many vital functions and has been extensively studied. By contrast, the sleep-onset period (SOP), often portrayed as a mere prelude to sleep, has been largely overlooked and remains poorly characterized. Recent findings, however, have reignited interest in this transitional period and have shed light on its neural mechanisms, cognitive dynamics, and clinical implications. This review synthesizes the existing knowledge about the SOP in humans. We first examine the current definition of the SOP and its limits, and consider the dynamic and complex electrophysiological changes that accompany the descent to sleep. We then describe the interplay between internal and external processing during the wake-to-sleep transition. Finally, we discuss the putative cognitive benefits of the SOP and identify novel directions to better diagnose sleep-onset disorders.
睡眠对许多重要功能至关重要，并且已经得到了广泛的研究。相比之下，睡眠起始期（SOP）通常被描述为睡眠的前奏，在很大程度上被忽视了，其特征也描述得很差。然而，最近的发现重新引起了人们对这个过渡阶段的兴趣，并揭示了它的神经机制、认知动态和临床意义。这篇综述综合了目前关于人类 SOP 的知识。我们首先检查了 SOP 的当前定义及其局限性，并考虑了伴随睡眠下降的动态和复杂的电生理变化。然后，我们描述了在从清醒到睡眠的过渡过程中内部和外部处理之间的相互作用。最后，我们讨论了 SOP 的潜在认知益处，并确定了更好地诊断睡眠起始障碍的新方向。
