Sleep and COVID-19. A Case Report of a Mild COVID-19 Patient Monitored by Consumer-Targeted Sleep Wearables

Abstract

Since its first description in Wuhan, China, the novel Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) has spread rapidly around the world. The management of this major pandemic requires a close coordination between clinicians, scientists, and public health services in order to detect and promptly treat patients needing intensive care. The development of consumer wearable monitoring devices offers physicians new opportunities for the continuous monitoring of patients at home. This clinical case presents an original description of 55 days of SARS-CoV-2-induced physiological changes in a patient who routinely uses sleep-monitoring devices. We observed that sleep was specifically affected during COVID-19 (Total Sleep time, TST, and Wake after sleep onset, WASO), within a seemingly bidirectional manner. Sleep status prior to infection (e.g., chronic sleep deprivation or sleep disorders) may affect disease progression, and sleep could be considered as a biomarker of interest for monitoring COVID-19 progression. The use of habitual data represents an opportunity to evaluate pathologic states and improve clinical care.

Keywords: COVID-19; consumer sleep wearables; sleep.

Figure 1

Nocturnal total sleep time, skin temperature, heart rate, breathing, and steps before, during, and after SARS-CoV-2 active disease.

Figure 2

(A) Average physiological parameters before, during, and after SARS-CoV-2 (COVID) infection and (B) Correlation analysis between TST, WASO, temperature, heart rate rhythm, light sleep, and COVID-19 clinical signs. * is a significant difference with before SARS-CoV-2, (r) are Pearson correlation coefficients between values.