Algorithms for the analysis of polysomnographic recordings with customizable criteria

The diagnosis of Sleep Apnoea-Hypopnoea Syndrome requires the visual inspection of a recording containing a large number of physiological parameters of the patient –the polysomnogram. The purpose of this visual inspection is the identification and characterization of different types of pathological events that occur over these parameters. These events are defined by a set of morphological criteria. Based on these criteria, commercial tools have been developed to support clinicians in the task of visually inspecting polysomnograms. This article argues that the standard morphological criteria are just guiding recommendations that experienced physicians often adapt to each specific diagnostic context. Thus, tools that support the analysis of polysomnograms ideally should use flexible criteria that could be easily customizable by clinicians. In this paper, we propose algorithms capable of identifying pathological events relevant in the diagnosis of SAHS using custom criteria