Pan African Clinical Trials Registry
South African Medical Research Council, South African Cochrane Centre
PO Box 19070, Tygerberg, 7505, South Africa
Telephone: +27 21 938 0835 or +27 21 938 0967
Email: pactradmin@mrc.ac.za Website: pactr.samrc.ac.za
Trial no.: PACTR202609728712651 Date of Registration: 04/09/2026
Trial Status: Retrospective registration - This trial was registered after enrolment of the first participant
TRIAL DESCRIPTION
Public title Preferred music during a post-nap warm-up partially attenuates sleep inertia effects on sleepiness and cognitive and physical performance in physically active men: a randomized crossover study.
Official scientific title Preferred music during a post-nap warm-up partially attenuates sleep inertia effects on sleepiness and cognitive and physical performance in physically active men: a randomized crossover study.
Brief summary describing the background and objectives of the trial Background: Sleep inertia is a transient state of reduced alertness and impaired cognitive and psychomotor functioning that may occur following awakening from sleep. Daytime napping can temporarily impair cognitive and physical performance during the post-awakening period. Previous research has shown beneficial effects of preferred music on arousal, motivation, and aspects of cognitive and physical performance, whereas evidence regarding its effects on sleep inertia remains limited. Therefore, preferred music may represent a simple, non-pharmacological strategy to facilitate post-nap recovery. This trial aimed to investigate whether listening to preferred music during a 10-minute post-nap warm-up attenuates sleep inertia and facilitates the recovery of subjective alertness, cognitive performance, and physical performance following a 90-minute daytime nap opportunity. The effects of the music intervention were compared with a 90-minute nap without music and a no-nap control condition.
Type of trial RCT
Acronym (If the trial has an acronym then please provide)
Disease(s) or condition(s) being studied Sleep inertia
Sub-Disease(s) or condition(s) being studied
Purpose of the trial Physical activity and nutrition
Anticipated trial start date 30/03/2026
Actual trial start date 30/03/2026
Anticipated date of last follow up 20/05/2026
Actual Last follow-up date
Anticipated target sample size (number of participants) 22
Actual target sample size (number of participants)
Recruitment status Completed
Publication URL
Secondary Ids Issuing authority/Trial register
STUDY DESIGN
Intervention assignment Allocation to intervention If randomised, describe how the allocation sequence was generated Describe how the allocation sequence/code was concealed from the person allocating the participants to the intervention arms Masking If masking / blinding was used
Crossover: all participants receive all interventions in different sequence during study Randomised Simple randomization using a randomization table created by a computer software program Allocation Sequence/Code was not concealed Open-label(Masking Not Used)
INTERVENTIONS
Intervention type Intervention name Dose Duration Intervention description Group size Nature of control
Control Group No Nap Control One 90-minute no-nap control session Approximately 2 hours 50 minutes (from 13:20 to approximately 16:10) Participants arrived at the laboratory at 13:20. From 13:30 to 15:00, participants remained awake and read a book for 90 minutes. At 15:20, participants completed a 10-minute warm-up without music. The T1 test battery was administered at 15:30 and the T2 test battery at 16:00. The same test battery was performed at T1 and T2 and included the Stanford Sleepiness Scale (SSS), readiness to perform, the 5-minute Psychomotor Vigilance Task (PVT), handgrip strength (HGS), and countermovement jump (CMJ). 22 Active-Treatment of Control Group
Experimental Group Nap One 90-minute nap opportunity Approximately 2 hours 50 minutes (from 13:20 to approximately 16:10) Participants arrived at the laboratory at 13:20. From 13:30 to 15:00, participants were given a 90-minute nap opportunity under standardized laboratory conditions, with awakening occurring freely. Twenty minutes after awakening, participants completed a 10-minute warm-up without music. The T1 test battery was administered 30 minutes after awakening and the T2 test battery 60 minutes after awakening. The same test battery was performed at T1 and T2 and included the Stanford Sleepiness Scale (SSS), readiness to perform, the 5-minute Psychomotor Vigilance Task (PVT), handgrip strength (HGS), and countermovement jump (CMJ). Nap duration was monitored using a Fitbit Charge 6. 22
Experimental Group Nap and Music One 90-minute nap opportunity with music during the post-nap warm-up. Approximately 2 hours 50 minutes (from 13:20 to approximately 16:10) Participants arrived at the laboratory at 13:20. From 13:30 to 15:00, participants were given a 90-minute nap opportunity under standardized laboratory conditions, with awakening occurring freely. Twenty minutes after awakening, participants completed a 10-minute warm-up with their preferred music at a tempo of 120–140 beats per minute (BPM). The T1 test battery was administered 30 minutes after awakening and the T2 test battery 60 minutes after awakening. The same test battery was performed at T1 and T2 and included the Stanford Sleepiness Scale (SSS), readiness to perform, the 5-minute Psychomotor Vigilance Task (PVT), handgrip strength (HGS), and countermovement jump (CMJ). Nap duration was monitored using a Fitbit Charge 6. 22
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
List inclusion criteria List exclusion criteria Age Category Minimum age Maximum age Gender
Healthy male physical education students. Habitual daytime nappers. Able to complete all experimental procedures. Diagnosed sleep disorder. Current night-shift work. Use of medication known to affect sleep, alertness, or cognitive function. Musculoskeletal injury during the preceding 3 months that restricted training participation or could interfere with maximal handgrip strength or countermovement jump performance. Adult: 18 Year(s)-44 Year(s) 19 Year(s) 22 Year(s) Male
ETHICS APPROVAL
Has the study received appropriate ethics committee approval Date the study will be submitted for approval Date of approval Name of the ethics committee
Yes 24/03/2026 CERS ISSEPS
Ethics Committee Address
Street address City Postal code Country
BP 1068 Sfax 3000 Tunisia
OUTCOMES
Type of outcome Outcome Timepoint(s) at which outcome measured
Secondary Outcome Sleepiness and readiness to perform, assessed using the Stanford Sleepiness Scale (SSS) and a 0–10 readiness-to-perform scale. 30 minutes and 60 minutes post-intervention.
Primary Outcome Cognitive performance, assessed using the 5-minute PVT, including mean reaction time and number of lapses. 30 minutes and 60 minutes post-intervention.
Primary Outcome Physical performance, assessed by maximal handgrip strength (HGS) and countermovement jump (CMJ) height. 30 minutes and 60 minutes post-intervention.
RECRUITMENT CENTRES
Name of recruitment centre Street address City Postal code Country
Laboratoire EM2S BP 1068 Sfax 3000 Tunisia
FUNDING SOURCES
Name of source Street address City Postal code Country
Ali Abdelkafi Cite Bahri 2 Rue 2007 N03 Sfax 3064 Tunisia
SPONSORS
Sponsor level Name Street address City Postal code Country Nature of sponsor
Primary Sponsor Ali Abdelkafi Cite Bahri 2 Rue 2007 N03 Sfax 3064 Tunisia Individual
COLLABORATORS
Name Street address City Postal code Country
Khaled Trabelsi BP 1068 Sfax 3000 Tunisia
Hamdi Chtourou BP 1068 Sfax 3000 Tunisia
CONTACT PEOPLE
Role Name Email Phone Street address
Principal Investigator Ali Abdelkafi ali.abdelkafi@isseps.usf.tn +21620228271 Cite Bahri 2 Rue 2007 N03
City Postal code Country Position/Affiliation
Sfax 3064 Tunisia PhD Student
Role Name Email Phone Street address
Public Enquiries Ali Abdelkafi ali.abdelkafi@isseps.usf.tn +21620228271 Cite Bahri 2 Rue 2007 N03
City Postal code Country Position/Affiliation
Sfax 3064 Tunisia PhD Student
Role Name Email Phone Street address
Scientific Enquiries Ali Abdelkafi ali.abdelkafi@isseps.usf.tn +21620228271 Cite Bahri 2 Rue 2007 N03
City Postal code Country Position/Affiliation
Sfax 3064 Tunisia PhD Student
REPORTING
Share IPD Description Additional Document Types Sharing Time Frame Key Access Criteria
Yes Individual participant data will not be made available for sharing. Study Protocol Not applicable; IPD will not be shared. Not applicable; individual participant data will not be made available.
URL Results Available Results Summary Result Posting Date First Journal Publication Date
No
Result Upload 1: Result Upload 2: Result Upload 3: Result Upload 4: Result Upload 5:
Result URL Hyperlinks Link To Protocol
Result URL Hyperlinks
Changes to trial information
Section Name Field Name Date Reason Old Value Updated Value
Trial Information Trial description 27/08/2026 Added a brief background about sleep inertia, daytime napping, and the limited evidence regarding the effects of preferred music on sleep inertia, as requested by the reviewer. This trial aimed to investigate whether listening to preferred music during a 10-minute post-nap warm-up attenuates sleep inertia and facilitates the recovery of subjective alertness, cognitive performance, and physical performance following a 90-minute daytime nap opportunity. The effects of the music intervention were compared with a 90-minute nap without music and a no-nap control condition. This trial aimed to investigate whether listening to preferred music during a 10-minute post-nap warm-up attenuates sleep inertia and facilitates the recovery of subjective alertness, cognitive performance, and physical performance following a 90-minute daytime nap opportunity. The effects of the music intervention were compared with a 90-minute nap without music and a no-nap control condition. Background: Sleep inertia is a transient state of reduced alertness and impaired cognitive and psychomotor functioning that may occur following awakening from sleep. Daytime napping can temporarily impair cognitive and physical performance during the post-awakening period. Previous research has shown beneficial effects of preferred music on arousal, motivation, and aspects of cognitive and physical performance, whereas evidence regarding its effects on sleep inertia remains limited. Therefore, preferred music may represent a simple, non-pharmacological strategy to facilitate post-nap recovery.
Section Name Field Name Date Reason Old Value Updated Value
Trial Information Trial description 04/09/2026 PACTR Admin This trial aimed to investigate whether listening to preferred music during a 10-minute post-nap warm-up attenuates sleep inertia and facilitates the recovery of subjective alertness, cognitive performance, and physical performance following a 90-minute daytime nap opportunity. The effects of the music intervention were compared with a 90-minute nap without music and a no-nap control condition. Background: Sleep inertia is a transient state of reduced alertness and impaired cognitive and psychomotor functioning that may occur following awakening from sleep. Daytime napping can temporarily impair cognitive and physical performance during the post-awakening period. Previous research has shown beneficial effects of preferred music on arousal, motivation, and aspects of cognitive and physical performance, whereas evidence regarding its effects on sleep inertia remains limited. Therefore, preferred music may represent a simple, non-pharmacological strategy to facilitate post-nap recovery. Background: Sleep inertia is a transient state of reduced alertness and impaired cognitive and psychomotor functioning that may occur following awakening from sleep. Daytime napping can temporarily impair cognitive and physical performance during the post-awakening period. Previous research has shown beneficial effects of preferred music on arousal, motivation, and aspects of cognitive and physical performance, whereas evidence regarding its effects on sleep inertia remains limited. Therefore, preferred music may represent a simple, non-pharmacological strategy to facilitate post-nap recovery. This trial aimed to investigate whether listening to preferred music during a 10-minute post-nap warm-up attenuates sleep inertia and facilitates the recovery of subjective alertness, cognitive performance, and physical performance following a 90-minute daytime nap opportunity. The effects of the music intervention were compared with a 90-minute nap without music and a no-nap control condition.
Section Name Field Name Date Reason Old Value Updated Value
Trial Information Actual trial start date 04/09/2026 PACTR Admin 30 Mar 2025
Section Name Field Name Date Reason Old Value Updated Value
Trial Information Actual trial start date 04/09/2026 PACTR Admin 30 Mar 2025 30 Mar 2026