Purpose: According to the American Association of Sleep Disorders, periodic leg movements (PLM) are classi®ed into the group of intrinsic sleep disorders. Studies on PLM in individuals with spinal cord injury are very recent. The objective of the present study was to assess the e cacy of aerobic training in reducing the index/score of PLM in individuals with complete spinal cord injury. Methods: Twelve male volunteers with complete spinal cord injury between T7 and T12 were submitted to six polysonographies (PSG Oxford Medilog SAC system; EEG, EMG and EOG: (1) basal night, (2) 12 h after a maximum e ort test, (3) 36 h after a maximum e ort test, (4) after 44 days of aerobic physical training, (5) 12 h after the last training session, and (6)

Flight safety is one of the most important and frequently discussed issues in aviation. Recent accident inquiries have raised questions as to how the work of flight crews is organized and the extent to which these conditions may have been contributing factors to accidents. Fatigue is based on physiologic limitations, which are reflected in performance deficits. The purpose of the present study was to provide an analysis of the periods of the day in which pilots working for a commercial airline presented major errors. Errors made by 515 captains and 472 copilots were analyzed using data from flight operation quality assurance systems. To analyze the times of day (shifts) during which incidents occurred, we divided the light-dark cycle (24:00) in four periods: morning, afternoon, night, and early morning. The differences of risk during the day were reported as the ratio of morning to afternoon, morning to night and morning to early morning error rates. For the purposes of this research, level 3 events alone were taken into account, since these were the most serious in which company operational limits were exceeded or when established procedures were not followed. According to airline flight schedules, 35% of flights take place in the morning period, 32% in the afternoon, 26% at night, and 7% in the early morning. Data showed that the risk of errors increased by almost 50% in the early morning relative to the morning period (ratio of 1:1.46). For the period of the afternoon, the ratio was 1:1.04 and for the night a ratio of 1:1.05 was found. These results showed that the period of the early morning represented a greater risk of attention problems and fatigue.

Study design: Experimental, controlled trial. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to evaluate over a 15-day period alterations in sleep pattern of rats after spinal cord injury (SCI). Setting: Federal University of Sa˜o Paulo, Department of Psychobiology. Methods: In total, 20 male Wistar rats were used. The rats were divided in two groups: SHAM and SCI. The rats were submitted to the following procedures: electrode insertion surgery, 24 h duration baseline sleep recording, SCI (level T9) and subsequent sleep recording for 15 consecutive days. Results:The results showed a reduction in sleep efficiency in the light period for Days 1-3, 5, 10 and 12 after SCI in relation to the SHAM group, with alterations in total waking time and sleep stages. Limb movements were observed 4 days after SCI. Conclusion: The present findings suggest that SCI may be heavily involved in altering sleep pattern in SCI subjects and that the inactivity caused by SCI may be exacerbating this altered sleep pattern. Sponsorship: Associac¸a˜o Fundo de Incentivo a`Psicofarmacologia (AFIP), FAPESP (03/ 06297-3, and CEPID 98/143033) and CNPQ.

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