The challenge in finding a simple, accurate, reliable, and affordable tool for the objective assessment of excessive...

Excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) refers to a physiological state where individuals have difficulty remaining alert during the day. Managing EDS is particularly challenging to study and treat due to its multifaceted nature. Assessment methods include both subjective and objective approaches. Subjective evaluation often relies on simple, widely accepted, and widely used questionnaires; however, these tools are inherently limited by self-reporting bias. Objective assessment, on the other hand, primarily involves two well-known and reliable tests, but these are costly, time-consuming, and impractical for use outside of sleep units. Therefore, developing an objective tool that can quickly and accurately detect a decline in alertness, while remaining reliable, easy to use, and affordable, is of critical importance for sleep clinicians, safety organizations, and researchers. According to PRISMA guidelines, we did a systematic analysis of 95 studies that used photoplethysmography (PPG) for assessing EDS, drowsiness, and/or fatigue during the last 15 years (2010-2025). With advances in wearable technology, particularly through PPG and artificial intelligence, achieving this goal may be attainable. The next essential step is rigorous validation against established gold-standard tests to ensure the tool meets scientific and clinical standards for widespread adoption.