Narcolepsy and Breathing Related Sleep Disorders

Overview of Narcolepsy

• Principal symptom: Recurrent intense need for sleep, lapses into sleep, or napping
• Also accompanied by at least one:
  • Cataplexy
  • Hypocretin deficiency
  • Going into REM sleep abnormally fast (<15 min), as evidenced by polysomnographic measures

Facts & Statistics: Narcolepsy

• It’s a rare condition
• Affects about .03% to .16% of the population
• Equally distributed between males and females
• Onset during adolescence
• Typically improves over time

Overview of Breathing Related Sleep Disorders

• Include three different disorders previously classified as parts of the same disorder:
  • Obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea
  • Airflow stops, but respiratory system works
  • Central sleep apnea (CSA)
  • Respiratory systems stops for brief periods
  • Sleep-related hypoventilation: Decreased breathing during sleep not better explained by another sleep disorder

Facts and Features

• Obstructive sleep apnea occurs in 10 to 20% of population
• More common in males
• Associated with obesity and increasing age
• Persons are usually minimally aware of apnea problem
• Often snore, sweat during sleep, wake frequently
• May have morning headaches
• May experience episodes of falling asleep during the day (due to poor sleep quality at night)