Correlations of physiological activities in nocturnal Cheyne–Stokes respiration

We have conducted a power–spectrum–density (PSD) analysis of the distinct sleep stages of a previously diagnosed nocturnal Cheyne–Stokes respiration patient (NCSR) and studied the correlations of different physiological activities. This is the first study where the correlations were analyzed separately for different sleep stages and the influence of arousals was completely eliminated. Mathematical analysis of the polysomnographical records revealed clear indicators of the disorder in the form of large peaks in a very-low frequency range of f ≈ 0.02 Hz. We have shown existence of the significant entrainment of the cerebral and cardiac activities with respiration during different stages of sleep in the patient. The entrainment is highly pronounced in light (stage 2) and deep (stage 3) sleep, but is significantly less pronounced in rapid eye movement sleep. A correlation functions analysis revealed that the correlations between the central activities and respiration attain maximum at negative lag times. Lagging of respiration behind the central activities favors the central hypothesis of generation of NCSR. On the basis of comparison of PSD plots of a NCSR patient and a healthy patient we speculate that the vasomotor center of a NCSR patient assumes the control function in the respiratory control system. Clinical applications of the findings of the study may lead to the development of novel low-cost methods of diagnostic of NCSR based on easy-to-obtain electrocardiogram or electroencephalogram records of patients and emergence of some forms of “substitution therapy”.