Narcolepsy
A chronic sleep disorder that causes overwhelming daytime drowsiness.
The cause of narcolepsy isn’t well understood but may involve genetic factors and abnormal signaling in the brain.
Narcolepsy causes sudden attacks of sleep. Sudden loss of muscle tone and hallucinations might occur.
Stimulants, antidepressants, and other medications can help.
Cluster Number:
Wiki Number: PW130
Diagnosis: Narcolepsy
US Patients: Estimated to affect 200,000, but only 50,000 diagnosed.
World Patients:
Sex Ratio:
Age Onset: Adolescence and early adulthood
Brain Area:
Symptoms: Inability to regulate poor-quality sleep-wake cycles and brief, involuntary sleeping; 70% have catalepsy-sudden muscle weakness;
Progression: The Wikipedia article lists a number of genes and chromosomes regulating sleep, too complex for this overview.
Causes: family history 10%; loss of orexin neurons (which regulate sleep and wakefulness) in the lateral hypothalamus
Medications: Several other medications are being developed.
Therapies: regular short naps & sleep-hygiene=quiet bedroom, bed for sleep and sex only; regular bedtimes.
Youtube Video: What is Narcolepsy?
Amazon or Library Book:
My Dad Naps, Too!
Amazon or Library Book:
Waking Mathilda
Click the book to link or buy from Amazon.
Click the book to link or buy from Amazon.
Support Group: narcolepsynetwork.org; 401-667-2523
(Narcolepsy Network, Inc.)
4 CURRENT ARTICLES
FROM PUBMED
The world-wide medical research
reports chosen for each diagnosis
Clicking each title opens the
PubMed article’s summary-abstract.
- Narcolepsy in early childhood: a case report and a Mini reviewby Guorui Liu on January 22, 2025
Narcolepsy is a sleep-wake disorder with an onset commonly seen in individuals aged 10-30 years. Due to various reasons, the diagnosis of narcolepsy often experiences a delay of at least ten years. Diagnosing narcolepsy in children is particularly challenging due to atypical symptoms, leading to frequent misdiagnosis or missed diagnoses. We report a case of narcolepsy in a four-year-old girl to provide insights into the early diagnosis and treatment of narcolepsy in children. As a chronic...
- Sleep-related drugs utilization and suicide behaviors: a population-based study in Chinaby Yunshu Zhang on January 20, 2025
CONCLUSIONS: This population-based study confirms that SRDU is positively associated with suicidal ideation, plans, and attempts, even after accounting for the risk factors of insomnia, sleep apnea, RBD, and narcolepsy. Nonetheless, SRDU does not appear to influence the progression from suicidal ideation to attempt.
- The interaction between orexin, sleep deprivation and Alzheimer's disease: Unveiling an Emerging Connectionby Masoumeh Kourosh-Arami on January 17, 2025
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a devastating neurodegenerative disorder characterized by progressive cognitive decline and memory loss. Sleep-wake disorders are an extremely predominant and often disabling aspect of AD. Ox is vital in maintaining the sleep-wake cycle and promoting wakefulness. Dysfunction of Ox signaling has been associated with sleep disorders such as narcolepsy. In AD patients, the increase in cerebrospinal fluid Ox levels is related to parallel sleep deterioration. The...
- A roadmap toward promoting and improving brain health in Europe and closing the awareness and funding gapby Paul A J M Boon on January 16, 2025
CONCLUSIONS: The paper highlights the importance of a unified approach, integrating international collaborations and local initiatives, to improve BH outcomes based on the WHO-iGAP, and support sustainable development goals, in particular SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being and SDG 4: Quality Education.