FNB · DrNB · PDCC
30 Sleep Medicine Thesis Topics
Academic session 2026-2027 · 30 topics
This page lists 30 sleep medicine thesis topics for FNB, DrNB and PDCC candidates in India for the 2026-2027 academic session. Sleep medicine research is almost always built around polysomnographic data — objective, numerical and comparable across populations — with clinical and comorbidity correlation as the natural companion design.
The sleep medicine thesis topics below are built on that data structure. They cover obstructive sleep apnoea diagnosis and severity, positive airway pressure therapy adherence and outcomes, sleep architecture and comorbidity, non-obstructive sleep disorders, sleep in systemic disease, and the paediatric dimension of sleep-disordered breathing.
Click any topic to open it in the protocol generator with the title already filled in.
- A cross-sectional study of the polysomnographic profile of patients diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnoeaGet protocol
- An observational study of the apnoea-hypopnoea index and its clinical correlatesGet protocol
- A study of the concordance between home sleep testing and in-laboratory polysomnographyGet protocol
- An observational study of the Epworth Sleepiness Scale score and its correlation with polysomnographic severityGet protocol
- A comparative study of two polysomnographic scoring criteria for respiratory eventsGet protocol
- A cross-sectional study of the anthropometric and clinical predictors of obstructive sleep apnoea severityGet protocol
- An observational study of positional dependency of apnoea and its prevalence in a sleep laboratory populationGet protocol
- A study of the association between obstructive sleep apnoea severity and blood pressureGet protocol
- An observational study of glycaemic profile and its association with obstructive sleep apnoea in diabetic patientsGet protocol
- A cross-sectional study of the prevalence of obstructive sleep apnoea in patients with heart failureGet protocol
- An observational study of positive airway pressure adherence at three months and its determinantsGet protocol
- A study of the effect of positive airway pressure therapy on Epworth Sleepiness Scale scoresGet protocol
- An observational study of the residual apnoea-hypopnoea index from device downloadsGet protocol
- A cross-sectional study of the barriers to positive airway pressure adherence reported by patientsGet protocol
- An observational study of mandibular advancement device outcomes in mild to moderate sleep apnoeaGet protocol
- A cross-sectional study of sleep architecture in patients with insomnia and its clinical correlatesGet protocol
- An observational study of the polysomnographic findings in patients with restless legs syndromeGet protocol
- A study of the clinical and polysomnographic profile of patients with narcolepsyGet protocol
- An observational study of sleep quality assessed by actigraphy in patients with chronic insomniaGet protocol
- A cross-sectional study of sleep disturbance and its clinical associations in patients with rheumatoid arthritisGet protocol
- An observational study of sleep quality in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary diseaseGet protocol
- A study of the association between sleep-disordered breathing and cognitive function in elderly patientsGet protocol
- An observational study of the sleep study findings in patients with chronic kidney diseaseGet protocol
- A cross-sectional study of nocturnal oxygen desaturation in patients with neuromuscular diseaseGet protocol
- An observational study of the polysomnographic findings in children with suspected sleep apnoeaGet protocol
- A study of the association between adenotonsillar hypertrophy and polysomnographic severity in childrenGet protocol
- An observational study of the outcome of adenotonsillectomy on sleep study parameters in childrenGet protocol
- A cross-sectional study of screen time and sleep quality in adolescentsGet protocol
- An observational study of shift work and its effect on sleep quality assessed by validated instrumentsGet protocol
- A study of the referral pattern and diagnostic delay in patients with sleep disordersGet protocol
Choosing a Sleep Medicine thesis topic
What makes a sleep medicine fellowship thesis distinct from a respiratory medicine one?
Polysomnographic data. Apnoea-hypopnoea index, arousal index, sleep architecture parameters, oxygen desaturation indices and home oximetry recordings are the specialty's primary measurement tools and are not routinely available outside a sleep laboratory. A thesis that relies only on questionnaire scores is closer to general medicine.
What outcomes are realistic in sleep medicine?
Apnoea-hypopnoea index change on repeat polysomnography, blood pressure and sleepiness scores at three months of positive airway pressure therapy, device usage hours from download, and quality of life at a defined follow-up. Long-term cardiovascular event rates are not reachable in a fellowship.
What sample size is realistic?
A laboratory performing three or more studies a night supports sixty to one hundred new diagnoses a month. One to two hundred patients with confirmed obstructive sleep apnoea over twelve months is achievable for most fellowship questions. Uncommon sleep disorders should be planned as descriptive series.
Thesis and protocol questions
How is a thesis topic different from a thesis protocol?
The topic is the title — the question a study sets out to answer, together with the population and the design. The protocol is the full document built around it: background, review of literature, aims and objectives, inclusion and exclusion criteria, sample size calculation, methodology, statistical plan, ethics considerations, consent documents and references. A topic is agreed with a guide first; the protocol is written afterwards and submitted to the institutional ethics committee.
When does a postgraduate thesis have to be submitted?
For most Indian postgraduate programmes the protocol is submitted within the first six months of joining, and the completed thesis is submitted at least six months before the final examination. Exact deadlines are set by the university, so the departmental circular for the current session takes precedence over any general timeline.
How is sample size decided for a postgraduate thesis?
Sample size follows from the primary objective, not the other way round. A prevalence study is powered from an expected proportion and an acceptable margin of error; a comparative study is powered from the expected difference between groups, the standard deviation, alpha and desired power. The figure should then be checked against the institution's actual case load for the study period, because a statistically ideal sample that cannot be recruited in the time available is not a workable plan.
Does a thesis topic need ethics committee approval?
Yes. Every postgraduate thesis involving human participants, human data or human samples requires clearance from the institutional ethics committee before data collection begins. Approval is granted on the protocol rather than on the title, and the submission usually includes the protocol, the participant information sheet and the consent form in English and in the local language.
What makes a topic realistic for a three-year postgraduate programme?
A workable topic can be completed at a single centre, with equipment and investigations that are already available in routine practice, within roughly eighteen months of data collection. Topics that depend on external funding, specialised assays, multicentre coordination or long follow-up tend to stall. Choosing a condition the department already sees in volume matters more than choosing a novel one.
Can a thesis be published as a research paper afterwards?
Yes, and it is generally expected. A thesis is usually condensed into a paper of around three to four thousand words, restructured into the standard introduction, methods, results and discussion format, with the review of literature shortened considerably. Journals differ in their requirements, and the ethics approval number from the original thesis is normally cited in the methods section.