Eliminating Cumulative Sleep Debt and Sleep Satiation

Sleep debt can accumulate from periods of total or partial nights of sleep loss but is generally conceived of as a build-up of sleep pressure resulting from chronic, partial sleep restriction. Both laboratory and epidemiological studies have been used to characterize the neurobehavioral and physiological consequences of sleep debt. Sleep debt and sleep satiation are intertwined with concepts of sleep need, excess wakefulness, sleep extension, and core and optional sleep. The time course of recovery from sleep debt remains unclear; however, recent studies suggest it may have a relative long time constant.