Novel use of digital innovations & technology

Explore our leading sleep research by experts in psychology, medicine and engineering.

Our research

Our projects

Featured publications

Sleep health is undergoing a digital and technological innovations transformation. These developments are revolutionising the way sleep disorders are diagnosed, monitored, and treated. From wearable devices that track sleep and breathing patterns to app-based CBT-I therapies for insomnia, technology is providing new tools and insights to help people improve their sleep quality.

Advancements in data analytics and artificial intelligence are enabling our researchers to better understand the underlying causes of sleep disorders and identify new and effective treatments. These digital innovations are not only aiding work in sleep health, but they are also making it easier for people to access the care they need to achieve a good night's sleep.

OUR RESEARCH

Our transdisciplinary group of researchers, medical doctors, psychologists and engineers are working with industry partners to develop new, evidence-based technologies to better measure sleep and body-clock timing problems, screen for and treat sleep disorders, and manage sleep health in the community.

Our research includes multimillion-dollar National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) funded projects and is helping to re-define the measurement of sleep, ease of diagnosis, and treatment of sleep disorders. We partner with Government agencies and Industry to develop and test a range of new devices and technology-enabled treatment combinations.

This work is also supported by our consumer advisory group. To learn more about our Consumer Advisory and the work we do, see our Annual Review.

This research also aligns with our Sleep Health Treatment Clinic.

Learn more

^{Pictured: VCR Headset used to determine eye movement in a sleep and safety trial}

Current research projects include:

New methods for assessing breathing effort during sleep, and to reduce patient-ventilator timing problems in intensive care
Improving physiological signal analysis and algorithm design to track sleep, circadian and breathing disturbances
Testing tri-concentric ring electrodes in comparison to conventional EEG signals
Industry collaborations to test wearables and non-contacts sensors to assist with measurement, diagnosis and treatment of OSA, insomnia and body clock disruption using devices such as Thim, ReTimer glasses, mattress sensors and nightwear with built-in sensors
Developing technology-enabled therapies to treat sleep disorders more effectively and practically

^{Pictured: FHMRI Sleep Health Driving Simulator Unit}

Read Annual Sleep Health Report

Featured publications

An experimental investigation on the impact of wind turbine noise on polysomnography-measured and sleep diary-determined sleep outcomes Liebich, T., Lack, L., Hansen, K., Zajamsek, B., Micic, G., Lechat, B., Dunbar, C., Nguyen, D. P., Scott, H. & Catcheside, P., 1 Aug 2022, In: Sleep. 45, 8, 16 p., zsac085.
Beyond K-complex binary scoring during sleep: Probabilistic classification using deep learning Lechat, B., Hansen, K., Catcheside, P. & Zajamsek, B., 1 Oct 2020, In: SLEEP. 43, 10, 10 p., zsaa077.
Emerging applications of objective sleep assessments towards the improved management of insomnia Scott, H., Lechat, B., Manners, J., Lovato, N., Vakulin, A., Catcheside, P., Eckert, D. & Reynolds, A., Jan 2023, In: Sleep Medicine. 101, p. 138-145 8 p.
New and Emerging Approaches to Better Define Sleep Disruption and Its Consequences Lechat, B., Scott, H., Naik, G., Hansen, K., Nguyen, D. P., Vakulin, A., Catcheside, P. & Eckert, D. J., 7 Oct 2021, In: Frontiers in Neuroscience. 15, 17 p., 751730.
Multinight Prevalence, Variability, and Diagnostic Misclassification of Obstructive Sleep Apnea Lechat, B., Naik, G., Reynolds, A., Aishah, A., Scott, H., Loffler, K. A., Vakulin, A., Escourrou, P., McEvoy, R. D., Adams, R. J., Catcheside, P. G. & Eckert, D. J., 1 Mar 2022, In: American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. 205, 5, p. 563-569 7 p.
Progress in Brain-Computer Interface: Challenges and Potentials. Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience 15 (2021): 4. S. Saha, A. Khondaker. K, Mamun, I. Ahmed, R. Mostafa, G. R. Naik, S. Darvishi, A. Khandoker, and M. Baumert.
Single night diagnosis of sleep apnea contributes to inconsistent cardiovascular outcome findings. Chest. 2023 (in press) Lechat B, Nguyen DP, Reynolds A, Loffler K, Escourrou P, McEvoy RD, Adams R, Catcheside PG, Eckert DJ.
Sleep irregularity is associated with increased risk of hypertension: Data from over two million nights Scott, H., Lechat, B., Reynolds, A., Lovato, N., Escourrou, P., Catcheside, P. & Eckert, D., Jun 2022, In: SLEEP. 45, sup 1, p. A93–A94 2 p.
The development and accuracy of the THIM wearable device for estimating sleep and wakefulness Scott, H., Lovato, N. & Lack, L., 12 Jan 2021, In: Nature and Science of Sleep. 13, p. 39-53 15 p.
Wearable Bluetooth Triage Healthcare Monitoring System," Sensors, no. 22, vol. 21, pp. 7586, 2021. 2 C. Polley, T. Jayarathna, U. Gunawardana, G. R. Naik, T. Hamilton, E. Andreozzi, P. Bifulco, D. Esposito, J. Centracchio, and G. Gargiulo

Resources

Sleep Health Foundation website

The sleep Health Foundation website has a number of resources and fact sheets relevant to sleep disorders.

Australian Sleep Association website

The Australian Sleep Association website has a number of resources and information relevant to sleep disorders.

GROUP MEMBERS

Research theme Co-lead

Professor Peter Catcheside

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Research theme Co-lead

Bastien Lechat

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Research theme Co-lead

Hannah Scott

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Professor Danny Eckert, Director FHMRI Sleep Health, Matthew Flinders Professor

Research Associate Duc Phuc Nguyen

Research Fellow Ganesh Naik

Emeritus Professor Leon Lack

Darah-Bree Benson-Boakes, PhD Candidate

Jack Manners, PhD Candidate

Josh Fitton, PhD Candidate

Alisha Guyett, PhD Candidate

Nikki Stuart, PhD Candidate

Julia Demura, PhD Candidate

WORK WITH US

We have long-term international and Australian sleep health partnerships across universities, South Australian Local Health Network and with industry groups. Please contact a research directly to discuss opportunities.

CONTACT

Please contact a researcher directly by following the link to their individual contact pages above. Alternatively, you can email aish.sleeplab@flinders.edu.au

aish.sleeplab@flinders.edu.au