Wireless Sleep Staging System Could Solve the Sleep Disorder Problems

Posted by Sierra Monica B. in Science on 09 14th, 2009 | no responses

Researchers at the IMEC and the Holst Center detailed an innovative system that could solve the sleep disorder problem that many people suffer from. ScienceDaily wrote about a miniaturized wireless sleep staging system that can be used from the comfort of your home, while providing early screening of sleep abnormalities.
The system was validated in the laboratory at the University Hospital Center from Charleroi, André Vésale Hospital, in Belgium, where it proved to be ready for commercialization.
What researchers plan to achieve after the system enters mass production is to enable remote sleep monitoring via a wearable headset.

According to the latest statistics, 10% of the US population suffers from sleep apnea, while no less than 1 billion people worldwide complain about chronic nasal congestion.
The wearable wireless sleep staging system is said to be lightweight, featuring a smart design for comfort, and consists of a head band, three sensor nodes in charge with the electroencephalogram monitoring for brain activity, electro-oculogram measurement for the eye activity, and electromyogram monitoring for the chin muscle activity.
Based on the ultra-low power bio-potential read-out application-specific integrated circuit in charge with amplifying and filtering the five ExG signals, the system sends these signals wirelessly to a recording computer.

Test results showed that this new system type could replace the existing monitoring systems in the near future.