Sleep Profiler Biomarkers for
Characterization of Neurodegenerative Disorders

Over the past 6 years and with National Institute of Aging support, Advanced Brain Monitoring has formed a research consortium to assist in the validation of sleep biomarkers for use in phenotyping specific neurodegenerative disorders.

Our recent manuscripts describe the discovery of a new biomarker called non-REM hypertonia (NRH). We’ve evaluated NRH in its relationship to REM sleep without atonia and further validated our staging accuracy in patients with isolated REM sleep behavior disorder. We’ve also studied how NRH relates to sleep spindle activity and autonomic dysregulation.

We recently presented data that investigated whether atypical N3 sleep was a biomarker for altered mental status in Lewy body disease. We’ve also reported a strong association between sleep and wake EEG slowing attributed to neurodegeneration.

In 2019, we identified an association between supine sleep and neurodegenerative disorders. At JSSR we updated our findings, describing a potential mechanism of action and confirming an association between supine sleep and Lewy body disease, Alzheimer’s disease or mild cognitive impairment.

We also completed community-based surveys, finding 87% of older adults want to know if they are at-risk for a neurodegenerative disorder, and what physicians should and should not do to help them.

We have now applied AI to nine sleep biomarkers to provide a neurodegenerative disorder risk for the categories normal, Lewy body disorder, Alzheimer’s disorder, or prodromal synucleinopathy. Access to the NDD reports will make it available to researchers and a limited number of clinicians as we further validate it.

Key findings are explained in this 40-minute video presentation summarizing our sleep biomarker studies:


40-minute Video Presentation Summarizing Our Biomarker Studies
Links to the studies discussed in the video:
  1. Proof-of-concept for characterization of neurodegenerative disorders using two non-REM biomarkers.
  2. Non-REM sleep with hypertonia in Parkinsonian Spectrum Disorders: A pilot investigation
  3. Autonomic dysregulation during sleep in Parkinsonian Spectrum disorders – a proof-of-concept.
  4. The accuracy and reliability of sleep staging and sleep biomarkers in patients with Non-REM sleep with hypertonia in isolated REM sleep behavior disorder
  5. Atypical N3 sleep: A biomarker for altered mental status in Lewy body disease?
  6. Head position during sleep: Potential implications for patients with neurodegenerative disorders
  7. Comparison of sleep and wake EEG biomarkers in mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease dementia
  8. Sleep and sleep position: potential implications for patients with neurodegenerative disease
  9. Collapsibility of the internal jugular veins in the lateral decubitus body position: A potential protective role of the cerebral venous outflow against neurodegeneration
  10. A community-based survey of personal perspective regarding prodromal sleep screening for neurodegenerative disorders
  11. Potential role of physicians in addressing the needs of those at-risk of a neurodegenerative disorder – A pilot study
  12. Effects of deep sedation on sleep in critically ill medical patients on mechanical ventilation
  13. Investigation of sleep metrics in the characterization of neurodegenerative disease
  14. The accuracy, night-to-night variability, and stability of frontopolar sleep EEG biomarkers
  15. Comparison of EMG power during sleep from the submental and frontalis muscles