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Scientists put sleep loss under the brain scanner

NCT ID NCT07822009

Knowledge-focused Sponsor: Örebro University, Sweden Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting This study
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Sep 16, 2026 · Last updated Sep 17, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

Researchers at Örebro University are studying how losing sleep changes brain activity, thinking skills, and markers of stress and inflammation. Twenty-four healthy adults aged 20 to 40 complete three conditions in random order: staying awake 28 to 32 hours, sleeping only 4 hours a night for two nights, and sleeping normally. Brain scans during rest and mental tasks, plus blood measures such as cortisol, show whether total and partial sleep loss affect the brain and body differently.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance
sleep deprivation, tested as total wakefulness and as a short sleep restriction
What this could lead to
If the study maps how lost sleep changes brain networks and stress markers, it could sharpen advice on shift work, study habits, and sleep loss limits.
What could go wrong
The study is small, with 24 healthy young adults, so its brain and biomarker patterns may not hold for older people or those with health conditions. Short-term sleep loss in a lab also differs from years of poor sleep.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Not a phased trial

Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.

Participants

About 24 people

The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.

Expected to start

Sep 2026

An estimate. Start dates often move.

Expected to finish

Jun 2027

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

Other sponsor

The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

20 to 40 years

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Accepted

You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: * Signed informed consent prior to any study-related procedures. * Age 20 to 40 years. * Normal weight at screening, defined as a BMI between 18.5 and 24.9. * Willingness to comply with the study protocol. Exclusion Criteria: * Current diagnosis of a psychiatric or neurological disorder or syndrome. * Current diagnosis of another medical condition that limits study participation. * Diagnosed sleep disorder (e.g., insomnia). * Self-reported poor sleep quality (\>5 on the PSQI). * Working permanent night shifts or rotating night shifts. * Use of medications or dietary supplements considered likely to affect the study outcome measures (e.g., melatonin). * Extremely high perceived stress (\>26 on the PSS). * Sleep apnea. * Excessive alcohol consumption (\>9 standard drinks per week or \>3 standard drinks per occasion). * Extreme morningness or eveningness (\>69 or \<31 on the MEQ). * Excessive daytime sleepiness (\>10 on the ESS). * Lifestyle factors that may contribute to fragmented sleep (e.g., being a parent of young children). * MRI contraindications: claustrophobia; shunts in the head; bullet fragments or metal fragments in the body; metal implants or electrodes in the body; left-handedness; previous head surgery; previous heart surgery; or ingestion of a video capsule that may remain in the gastrointestinal tract. * Any other reason that, in the opinion of the investigator, makes participation inappropriate.

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

Sleep Deprivation

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Sleep deprivation

How to take part

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  1. The places running it

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  2. The official record

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Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Örebro university

    Örebro, Örebro County, 70182, Sweden

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