Actigraphy

Actigraphy is increasingly used to help identify individual sleep and wake patterns. Advantages of actigraphy include objective-based measurement and noninvasive technology that is well tolerated. Actigraphy monitoring can occur naturalistically over long time periods. Although not a replacement for gold standard polysomnography, actigraphy provides a reasonably accurate alternative to assist with the diagnosis and management of sleep disorders, particularly when polysomnography is not feasible (such as in small children, the elderly, or with certain specific sleep complaints). In this article, we provide an overview of the history of actigraphy, its structure, function, and interpretation, and general clinical applications for use.