The 5α-reductase inhibitor finasteride is not associated with alterations in sleep spindles in men referred for polysomnography

Abstract

Objective Endogenous neurosteroids that potentiate the GABAA receptor are thought to enhance the generation of sleep spindles. This study tested the hypothesis that the 5α-reductase inhibitor finasteride, an agent associated with reductions in neurosteroids, would be associated with reduced sleep spindles in men referred for polysomnography. Methods Spectral analysis and spindle waveform detection were performed on electroencephalographic (EEG) sleep data in the 11–16Hz sigma band, as well as several subranges, from 27 men taking finasteride and 27 matched comparison patients (ages 18 to 81 years). Results No significant differences between groups were observed for spectral power or sleep spindle morphology measures, including spindle density, amplitude, duration, and integrated spindle activity. Conclusions Contrary to our hypothesis, these findings demonstrate that finasteride is not associated with alterations in sleep spindle range activity or spindle morphology parameters.

Increased high-frequency NREM EEG power associated with mindfulness-based interventions for chronic insomnia: Preliminary findings from spectral analysis

“…Signals were referenced to the contralateral mastoid and filtered using a 0.5-105Hz bandpass then a 55-65Hz notch filter to remove 60Hz noise while still enabling analysis of higher frequencies. Similar to prior studies [29,30], a semi-automatic artifact rejection and data cleaning procedure was utilized (performed blind to study group and timepoint). Specifically, power in low (1-4Hz) and high (16-40Hz) frequency bands across all epochs for each channel of each recording were reviewed, and notably high powered-epochs were removed, which often corresponded to the 99.5 th percentile of power distribution for that channel and recording.…”

Neurobehavioural complications of sleep deprivation: Shedding light on the emerging role of neuroactive steroids

“…Moreover, infusions of this steroids in the pedunculopontine tegmentum, which one of the main brain structures involved in REM sleep generation, promote REM sleep and the propensity to fall asleep during wakefulness . Although this evidence supports an important role of neurosteroids in sleep regulation, it should be noted that a recent study challenged this idea by showing that finasteride, the prototypical 5αR inhibitor, does not alter sleep spindles in men …”