Ketamine and propofol have opposite effects on postanesthetic sleep architecture in rats: relevance to the endogenous sleep–wakefulness substances orexin and melanin-concentrating hormone

Background Anesthesia and surgery disturb sleep. Disturbed sleep adversely affects postoperative complications involving the cardiovascular system, diabetes, and infection. General anesthetics share neuronal mechanisms involving endogenous sleep–wakefulness-related substances, such as orexin (OX) and melanin-concentrating hormone (MCH). We evaluated changes in sleep architecture and the concentration of OX and MCH during the peri-anesthetic period.