A deep learning approach for real-time detection of sleep spindles

OBJECTIVE: Sleep spindles have been implicated in memory consolidation and synaptic plasticity during NREM sleep. Detection accuracy and latency in automatic spindle detection are critical for real-time applications. APPROACH: Here we propose a novel deep learning strategy (SpindleNet) to detect sleep spindles based on a single EEG channel. While the majority of spindle detection methods are used for off-line applications, our method is well suited for online applications. MAIN RESULTS: Compared with other spindle detection methods, SpindleNet achieves superior detection accuracy and speed, as demonstrated in two publicly available expert-validated EEG sleep spindle datasets. Our real-time detection of spindle onset achieves detection latencies of 150-350 ms (~two-three spindle cycles) and retains excellent performance under low EEG sampling frequencies and low signal-to-noise ratios. SpindleNet has good generalization across different sleep datasets from various subject groups of different ages and species. SIGNIFICANCE: SpindleNet is ultra-fast and scalable to multichannel EEG recordings, with an accuracy level comparable to human experts, making it appealing for long-term sleep monitoring and closed-loop neuroscience experiments.