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A Rat Model Of Sleep Deprivation Prior To Traumatic Brain Injury, Steve G. Soehnlen

ETD Archive

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) has been called the "signature injury" of U.S. soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. Soldiers undergo a variety of stressors during their tours of duty that could complicate recovery from TBI, one of which is sleep deprivation (SD). In this study, we sought to create a rat model exploring the effects of prior REM sleep deprivation (RSD) on recovery from TBI-induced sensorimotor and cognitive deficits. Rats were deprived of REM sleep before they underwent a controlled cortical impact (CCI) to mimic a TBI. Forelimb sensorimotor function, hindlimb motor function, forelimb motor function, and spatial learning were assessed …