Implications of Poor Sleep on Synaptic Plasticity, Memory Consolidation, and Decision-Making in Military Populations

Abstract This chapter reviews sleep and cognitive plasticity in the context of military applications. Sleep is critical to learning and decision-making for the warfighter, and at the synaptic level sleep and cognitive function are shown to be inextricably intertwined. Understanding the physiological and biochemical aspects of sleep can promote targeted mitigation strategies to conserve and optimize a unit’s fighting strength under operational conditions that may induce sleep restriction, sleep deprivation, and circadian disruption. Sleep involves a reduction in responsiveness of central nervous system networks that render conscious thought and actions in response to environmental contingencies. Since overt symptoms associated with sleep deprivation are also seen in fatigue and in trauma memories, both of which are common in the context of military operations, these phenomena will be contrasted with sleep such that the leader can apply the remediation appropriate to underlying causes of impaired cognitive performance. Finally, performance optimization from an operational lens does not always lead to health from the lens of conserving the fighting strength, warranting careful consideration of trade-offs.