Sleep Staging and Sleep EEG Flashcards
6 cards from real EEG practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 6 Sleep Staging and Sleep EEG flashcards as text
An EEG epoch scored as REM typically shows all of the following EXCEPT:
Answer: Sleep spindles
Sleep spindles are a feature of NREM (N2) sleep and are absent during REM sleep; REM is defined by low-voltage mixed EEG, rapid eye movements, and muscle atonia.
Alpha intrusion into NREM sleep (alpha-delta sleep) is associated with:
Answer: Non-restorative sleep and fibromyalgia
Alpha-delta sleep, where alpha activity intrudes into slow-wave sleep, is linked to non-restorative sleep and is commonly described in fibromyalgia patients.
In polysomnography scoring, an arousal is defined as an abrupt EEG frequency shift lasting at least:
Answer: 3 seconds
AASM defines an arousal as an abrupt shift to higher EEG frequencies (alpha, theta, or >16 Hz) lasting ≥3 seconds, preceded by ≥10 seconds of sleep.
Which normal EEG variant appearing at sleep onset consists of brief 4–6 Hz runs with a positive polarity at the vertex?
Answer: Hypnic jerks with associated vertex potentials
Hypnic jerks are sudden body twitches at sleep onset that correlate with brief vertex-maximal EEG potentials and are a normal physiologic phenomenon.
The EEG technologist notes the patient's EEG shows continuous delta slowing only in the posterior head regions during deeper NREM sleep. This is most consistent with:
Answer: Normal occipital delta of sleep
Occipital delta waves during deep NREM sleep are a normal finding and should not be interpreted as pathological posterior slowing.
Sleep onset REM (SOREMP) within 15 minutes of sleep onset on a PSG is most suggestive of:
Answer: Narcolepsy
SOREMPs are a key diagnostic finding in narcolepsy, where the loss of orexin/hypocretin neurons disrupts normal sleep architecture and causes premature REM onset.