Some implications of the sleep patterns of pregnancy for postpartum emotional disturbances.

The article presents a study that examines the effect of pregnancy sleep patterns on emotional disturbances during postpartum periods. The subjects included 13 pregnant patients from the Obstetrics-Gynecology Clinic at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida. Ten of the patients were studied for 85 nights during late pregnancy and postpartum, while the three were studied for a total of 72 nights during their entire pregnancy and postpartum periods. Electroencephalography and electro-oculogram data were obtained from the subjects. The sleep pattern of thirteen non-pregnant subjects were also studied for comparison with the control group. The findings indicated that sleep disturbances in normal pregnancy are of greater intensity and can greatly affect one's physiological health.