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.
- The Lehigh Valley Health Network narcolepsy cohort: clinical and polysomnographic analysis of 304 casesby Rena Y Jiang on November 1, 2024
CONCLUSION: This is one of the largest monocentric studies to date of patients with narcolepsy and confirms the frequent comorbidities of narcolepsy. Specific clinical characteristics and comorbidities may help differentiate NT1 from NT2.
- Exploring the Literature on Narcolepsy: Insights into the Sleep Disorder That Strikes during the Dayby Ana-Maria Mațotă on November 1, 2024
Narcolepsy is a chronic sleep disorder that disrupts the regulation of a person's sleep-wake cycle, leading to significant challenges in daily functioning. It is characterized by excessive daytime sleepiness, sudden muscle weakness (cataplexy), sleep paralysis, and vivid hypnagogic hallucinations. A literature search was conducted in different databases to identify relevant studies on various aspects of narcolepsy. The main search terms included "narcolepsy", "excessive daytime sleepiness",...
- Clozapine and objective assessment of hypersomnolence in patients with schizophrenia: a systematic reviewby Clélia Quiles on October 31, 2024
Clozapine is effective in treatment-resistant schizophrenia but with adverse effects including sedation. Excessive daytime sleepiness, a symptom of hypersomnolence, is the most frequently reported subjective side-effect. The aim of this systematic review was to synthesise the literature evaluating the impact of clozapine on the objective assessment of hypersomnolence in people with schizophrenia. We systematically searched databases for articles evaluating hypersomnolence with...
- The impact of sleep problems on cerebral aneurysm risk is mediated by hypertension: a mediated Mendelian randomization studyby Xiaofei Yan on October 28, 2024
CONCLUSION: The causal relationship between insomnia and CA was predicted using genetic variance data, and insomnia was found to be a potential risk factor. Furthermore, hypertension is a mediator between insomnia and CA. Therefore, focusing on sleep problems and improving sleep quality may be an active and effective strategy to prevent CA.