Narcolepsy is a disease that has been on the receiving end of many jokes in our society. Yet it is a serious and life altering disease that is no laughing matter to the 1,000 in every 2,000 people in the U.S. that have it. .
I was drawn to this article because a former supervisor that I worked with had this disease. She was prescribed the drug Ritalin. It always impressed me that she could confront an angry client or give a speech without succumbing to the symptoms of her disease. She revealed that her case of narcolepsy wasn't that bad, but without the Ritalin she would just fall asleep anywhere. .
"The overall incident of narcolepsy is about 10 times that of Lou Gehrig's disease, half that of multiple sclerosis, five times that of cystic fibrosis, and about one quarter that of Parkinson's disease." Narcolepsy is a chronic disease, but not a progressive one. It is a puzzling neurological disorder that causes cataplexy, the loss of skeletal muscle tone without loss of consciousness, and persistent daytime sleepiness. Cataplectic attacks of narcolepsy can be triggered by exceedingly strong emotions such as laughter, embarrassment, anger, and athletic or sexual exertion. .
In tests on narcoleptic dogs, Emmanuel Mignot of Stanford and his co-workers identified a gene responsible for narcolepsy in dogs. "His research group determined that the dogs carry a mutation in the receptor for a neurotransmitter called hypocretin or orexin." These receptors are missing a critical part, so they can't respond normally to messages they receive. This is a recessive trait in the canines. .
However, they state that it is unlikely that most human narcoleptics have these mutated genes. Most narcoleptics have no narcoleptic relatives, and the disease does not occur until the second or third decade of life. Also, they have concluded that in 75 percent of the cases in which narcolepsy occurs in an identical twin, the other twin is unaffected.
This is what a person with narcolepsy has to go through everyday of their life. ... Narcolepsy is a chronic sleep disorder with no known cause. The main trait of narcolepsy is excessive and overwhelming daytime sleepiness. ... A diagnosis is pretty easy when all the symptoms of narcolepsy are present. ... The people whom are around a person with narcolepsy should know the symptoms of narcolepsy. ...
Narcolepsy affects 0.02%-0.04% of the general population in most countries affecting both genders[ CITATION DSM13 l 1033 ]. ... Narcolepsy can co-occur with bipolar, depressive and anxiety disorders. Three insightful articles will offer interesting facts and studies on narcolepsy. ... The study performed olfactory testing on 20 patients with narcolepsy associated with RBD and in 20 narcolepsy patients who had no history of RBD. ... Modafinil is an effective treatment for daytime sleepiness due to narcolepsy. ...
Humans and animals can both be affected by narcolepsy. ... Gelineau first labeled the disorder "Narcolepsy" in the year 1880. ... About half of Narcolepsy cases occur because of severe psychological stress or altered sleeping schedules, and about 40% of people suffering from narcolepsy have mental disorders. ... Cataplexy is a symptom unique to Narcolepsy, and is triggered by emotions. ... The symptoms of Narcolepsy can be very severe, and alter lives greatly. ...
Narcolepsy Abstract Sleep is an essential part of our lives. ... One such sleep disorder is narcolepsy, this disorder is a bit different from most disorders that disallow sleep, with narcolepsy you have no control of your sleep. ... Narcolepsy is characterized by sudden extreme spells of sleepiness. ... The third and final symptom of narcolepsy is called sleep paralysis. ... Now that we know about the symptoms of narcolepsy, it is important that we further define the disorder itself and explore the roots of narcolepsy. ...
(Discover 78) Beau is a dog suffering from narcolepsy. ... Narcolepsy doesn't affect just animals but humans as well. ... A study that further supports this is the study of narcolepsy involving identical twins. In 75% of the cases in which one twin had a case of narcolepsy, the other was unaffected. ... (Discover 81) It would also take a trigger like stress or a virus to cause narcolepsy. ...
(Discover 78) Beau is a dog suffering from narcolepsy. ... Narcolepsy doesn't affect just animals but humans as well. ... A study that further supports this is the study of narcolepsy involving identical twins. In 75% of the cases in which one twin had a case of narcolepsy, the other was unaffected. ... (Discover 81) It would also take a trigger like stress or a virus to cause narcolepsy. ...
Narcolepsy To understand narcolepsy we first must understand what a sleep disorder is. ... About one in 2,000 people suffers from narcolepsy. ... Thus, narcolepsy is a disorder in which REM sleep appears at an abnormal time. ... Narcolepsy has four classic symptoms: • cataplexy. ... Someone with narcolepsy may have many symptoms or very few symptoms. ...
(Zimbardo pg.98) The three types of sleep disorders are: insomnia, narcolepsy and sleep apnea. ... (Zimbardo pg. 99)Doctors can treat sleep apnea with a "device that pumps extra air into the lungs and jeeps the airway open during sleep." ( Zimbardo PG.99) Narcolepsy is a symptom where you suddenly fall asleep without warning. ... Oddly anything exciting causes a narcoleptic attack "(Zimbardo Pg.99) It is described as a "disorder of REM sleep involving sudden REM sleep attacks accomplished by cataplexy"(Zimbardo pg.99) Cataplexy is a second symptom of narcolepsy. ... Narcolepsy is a disorder...
