Assessment of SOMNOwatch plus EEG for sleep monitoring in healthy individuals.

Polysomnography (PSG) is still the standard in sleep monitoring, with several alternative solutions developed, including simplified electroencephalographic recorders such as SOMNOwatch plus EEG. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the validity of the recordings and of the analysis of the proprietary software of this solution, compared to PSG and semiautomatic scoring, respectively. From thirteen healthy adults, we recorded 27 nights simultaneously with a classical EEG amplifier (NeuroScan system) and the ambulatory SOMNOwatch plus EEG. Thereafter, we performed (semi-) automatic sleep analysis in Somnolyzer 24x7 and DOMINO Light (SOMNOwatch software). AASM scoring sensitivity of SOMNOwatch plus EEG, as revealed by Somnolyzer 24x7, was 97.79%, and specificity 87.19%. Paired T tests revealed no significant differences between the recordings of the two EEG systems, with intraclass correlation coefficients ranging from moderate to very good. When data were analyzed in DOMINO Light, sensitivity was 92.99% and specificity was 80.90%. Our data suggest that SOMNOwatch plus EEG might serve as a reliable instrument for recording sleep in healthy individuals, but its proprietary software, DOMINO Light, still seems to have weaknesses in terms of automatic sleep staging.