Nightmare Disorder
Nightmare disorder, also known as dream anxiety disorder, is a sleep disorder characterized by frequent nightmares. The nightmares, which often portray the individual in a situation that jeopardizes their life or personal safety, usually occur during the REM stages of sleep.
Cluster Number:
Wiki Number: PW136
Diagnosis: Nightmare Disorder
US Patients: 4% of adults; 1% of children
World Patients:
Sex Ratio: M;W2
Age Onset:
Brain Area:
Symptoms: frequent nightmares involving personal safety, usually occurring during REM stages of sleep; remembers every detail of the dream
Progression: does not wake up screaming, but reduce daytime efficiencies from being “tired”; fear and physical aggression are the most common
Causes: PTSD, extreme stress, death of a loved one; 30% have other psychiatric illnesses
Medications: several antipsychotic medicines have reduced nightmares; hypnosis and relaxation may also help
Therapies: EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) have helped portions of those with PTSD or other threatening experiences.
Youtube Video: Nightmares and Treatment
Amazon or Library Book: Nightmareland
Click the book to link or buy from Amazon.
Support Group: sleepeducation.org; 630-737-9700
(American Academy of Sleep Medicine)
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.
- Sleep health of adults and children with Moebius syndromeby Jessica R Dietch on January 26, 2025
INTRODUCTION: Moebius syndrome is a rare congenital disorder with frequent anecdotal reports of sleep disturbances not sufficiently categorized by prior literature. The present mixed-methods, two-phase study aimed to characterize the sleep health and symptoms of a cohort of adults and children (via parent proxies) with Moebius syndrome.
- Clinical significance criteria in the ICSD and DSM sleep disorder classifications: a content overlap analysis using the Jaccard indexby Christophe Gauld on January 25, 2025
CONCLUSIONS: These results highlight the variable application of CSC in sleep disorder classifications. Universal CSC inclusion may not be essential, but systematic discussion of its potential use can help refine diagnostic criteria. This refinement is important for accurately diagnosing sleep disorders and better differentiating the normal from the pathological, a major challenge in sleep medicine.
- Epidemiological characteristics and risk factors for heart failure in Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes: A retrospective analysis of the J-DREAMS databaseby Mitsuru Ohsugi on January 24, 2025
CONCLUSIONS: Comorbidities, especially CHD and deteriorating renal function, were strongly associated with HF history and new HF events among Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes. The study results suggested the importance of early intervention to treat comorbidities and maintain renal function.
- Factors impacting prazosin efficacy for nightmares and insomnia in PTSD patients - a systematic review and meta-regression analysisby Thaís Pereira Mendes on January 19, 2025
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating condition affecting 5.7 % of the global population in their lifetime. There is a strong association between trauma-related nightmares and insomnia with higher rates of physical illness, mental distress, and suicide among PTSD patients. Prazosin, an α1-adrenergic antagonist, has shown mixed results in treating these sleep disturbances. This study aims to evaluate the effect of prazosin compared to placebo on insomnia, nightmares, and global...