Human regional cerebral blood flow during rapid-eye-movement sleep

Owing to the coupling between CBF and neuronal activity, regional CBF is a reflection of neural activity in different brain regions. In this study we measured regional CBF during polysomnographically well-defined rapid-eye-movement (REM) sleep by the use of single photon emission computerized tomography and the new tracer 99mTc-dl-hexamethylpropyleneamine. Eleven healthy volunteers aged between 22 and 27 years were studied. CBF was measured on separate nights during REM sleep and during EEG-verified wakefulness. On awakening from REM sleep, all subjects reported visual dreams. During REM sleep CBF increased by 4% (p less than 0.01) in the associative visual area, while it decreased by 9% (p less than 0.01) in the inferior frontal cortex. The CBF increase in the associative visual area suggests that activation of cerebral structures processing complex visual material is correlated to visual dream experiences. On the other hand, the reduced involvement of the inferior frontal cortex observed during REM sleep might explain the poor temporal organization and bizarreness often experienced in dreams.