PERFORM Sleep Lab

The Sleep Research Laboratory at Concordia University’s PERFORM Centre is equipped with state-of-the art equipment and facilities for conducting overnight and long-term sleep studies, as well as daytime nap studies. Also referred to as polysomnography/PSG, a sleep study is a non-invasive way to monitor what is happening in the brain while an individual is asleep, by means of electroencephalography/EEG and a variety of other tools. An EEG detects and records brain waves during the various sleep stages and alternating sleep cycles. Simultaneously, the lab measures eye movement, oxygen level, heart rate, breathing rate, body movement, and muscle movement over time, using non-invasive technologies, while researchers use audio-video equipment to monitor sleep and wake behaviours. Research activities in this laboratory include investigation of brain activity and health consequences associated with sleep disorders, the role sleep plays in cognition and memory, and the impacts on sleep of such interventions as cognitive-behavioural therapy and physical activity. Integration of the Sleep Research Laboratory within the PERFORM Centre provides a unique opportunity for researchers to combine sleep assessments with the wide array of other on-site interventions and measurements that PERFORM offers, such as medical imaging, nutrition and physical activity.