Sleep Medicine

Nacrolepsy is a condition where excessive daytime sleepiness occurs regardless of the amount of sleep a person received from the previous night. Narcoleptics can also suffer from other forms of sleep problems: sleep paralysis or terrifying dreams or hallucinations just before falling asleep or upon awakening.

Narcolepsy is a neurological disorder that affects the control of sleep and wakefulness. People with narcolepsy experience excessive daytime sleepiness and intermittent, uncontrollable episodes of falling asleep during the day. These sudden sleep attacks may occur during any type of activity at any time of day.

Narcolepsy usually begins between age 15 and age 25 but it can become apparent at any age. In many cases, narcolepsy is undiagnosed and therefore untreated.

What Causes Narcolepsy?

The cause of narcolepsy is not known. However, some experts think narcolepsy may be caused by a deficiency in the brain's production of a chemical called hypocretin. In addition, researchers have discovered abnormalities in various parts of the brain involved in regulating sleep, which seem to contribute to symptom development. According to experts, it is likely that narcolepsy involves multiple factors that interact to cause neurological dysfunction and sleep disturbances.

The symptoms of narcolepsy include:

• Excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS): generally, EDS interferes with normal activities on a daily basis, whether or not a person with narcolepsy has sufficient sleep at night. People with EDS report mental cloudiness, a lack of energy and concentration, memory lapses, a depressed mood and/or extreme exhaustion.
• Cataplexy: this symptom consists of a sudden loss of muscle tone that leads to feelings of weakness and a loss of voluntary muscle control. It can cause symptoms ranging from slurred speech to total body collapse depending on the muscles involved. It is often triggered by intense emotion; for example surprise, laughter or anger.
• Hallucinations: usually these delusional experiences are vivid and frequently they are frightening. The content is primarily visual but any of the other senses can be involved.
• Sleep paralysis: this symptom involves the temporary inability to move or speak while falling asleep or waking up. These episodes are generally brief—lasting a few seconds to several minutes. After episodes end, people rapidly recover their full capacity to move and speak.