Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the slow rhythm and its relationship to spindling in early infancy. METHODS: We analyzed sleep MEG recordings containing sleep spindles, taken from 7 normal, healthy subjects at conceptional age 46-63 weeks in 21 sessions. RESULTS: We show that the sleep MEG in early infancy contains a slow rhythm, centered at approximately 0.2Hz, which showed a striking association with spindling. The slow rhythm grouped sleep spindles, which were clock-like with a recurrence rate of approximately 0.1Hz. CONCLUSIONS: The association of the 0.2Hz oscillation and low delta rhythms with spindling was so strong as to suggest that they may play a critical role during brain development in the genesis of sleep spindles. SIGNIFICANCE: Infant brain rhythms exhibit relatively simple, regular behavior, allowing the relationships between them to be more easily discerned.