The EEG correlates and dangerous behavioral consequences of drowsy driving after a single night of mild sleep deprivation.

Objective: Here, we investigated the behavioral, cognitive, and electrophysiological impact of mild, acute sleep loss via simultaneously recorded behavioral and electrophysiological measures of vigilance during a "real-world", simulated driving task.

Methods: Participants (N = 34) visited the lab for two testing days where their brain activity and vigilance were simultaneously recorded during a driving simulator task. The driving task lasted approximately 70 mins and consisted of tailgating the lead car at high speed, which braked randomly, requiring participants to react quickly to avoid crashing. The night before testing, participants either slept from 12am-9am (Normally Rested), or 1am-6am (Sleep Restriction).

Results: After a single night of mild sleep restriction, sleepiness was increased, participants took longer to brake, missed more braking events, and crashed more often. Brain activity showed more intense alpha burst activity and significant changes in EEG spectral power frequencies related to arousal (e.g., delta, theta, alpha). Importantly, increases in amplitude and number of alpha bursts predicted delays in reaction time when braking.

Conclusions: The findings of this study suggest that a single night of mild sleep loss has significant, negative consequences on driving performance and vigilance, and a clear impact on the physiology of the brain in ways that reflect reduced arousal.

Significance: Understanding neural and cognitive changes associated with sleep loss may lead to important advancements in identifying and preventing potentially dangerous sleep-related lapses in vigilance.