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Sleep disorder
A sleep disorder (somnipathy) is a medical disorder of the sleep patterns of a person or animal. Some
sleep disorders are serious enough to interfere with normal physical, mental and emotional functioning.
A test commonly ordered for some sleep disorders is the polysomnography.
Contents [hide]
1 Common disorders
2 Classifications
4 Sleep medicine
5 See also
6 References
7 External links
Primary insomnia: Chronic difficulty in falling asleep and/or maintaining sleep when no other cause is
found for these symptoms.
Delayed sleep phase syndrome (DSPS): inability to awaken and fall asleep at socially acceptable times
but no problem with sleep maintenance, a disorder of circadian rhythms. Other such disorders are
advanced sleep phase syndrome (ASPS) and Non-24-hour sleep-wake syndrome (Non-24), both much
less common than DSPS.
Hypopnea syndrome: Abnormally shallow breathing or slow respiratory rate while sleeping.
Narcolepsy: Excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) often culminating in falling asleep spontaneously but
unwillingly at inappropriate times.
Cataplexy: a sudden weakness in the motor muscles that can result in collapse to the floor.
Night terror: Pavor nocturnus, sleep terror disorder: abrupt awakening from sleep with behavior
consistent with terror.
Parasomnias: Disruptive sleep-related events involving inappropriate actions during sleep; sleep walking
and night-terrors are examples.
Periodic limb movement disorder (PLMD): Sudden involuntary movement of arms and/or legs during
sleep, for example kicking the legs. Also known as nocturnal myoclonus. See also Hypnic jerk, which is
not a disorder.
Rapid eye movement behavior disorder (RBD): Acting out violent or dramatic dreams while in REM
sleep.
Restless legs syndrome (RLS): An irresistible urge to move legs. RLS sufferers often also have PLMD.
Situational circadian rhythm sleep disorders: shift work sleep disorder (SWSD) and jet lag.
Obstructive sleep apnea: Obstruction of the airway during sleep, causing lack of sufficient deep sleep;
often accompanied by snoring. Other forms of sleep apnea are less common.
Sleep paralysis: is characterized by temporary paralysis of the body shortly before or after sleep. Sleep
paralysis may be accompanied by visual, auditory or tactile hallucinations. Not a disorder unless severe.
Often seen as part of Narcolepsy.
Sleepwalking or somnambulism: Engaging in activities that are normally associated with wakefulness
(such as eating or dressing), which may include walking, without the conscious knowledge of the
subject.
Nocturia: A frequent need to get up and go to the bathroom to urinate at night. It differs from Enuresis,
or bed-wetting, in which the person does not arouse from sleep, but the bladder nevertheless
empties.[1]
[edit] Classifications
Insomnia
Narcolepsy
Obstructive sleep apnea
Hypersomnia
Posttraumatic hypersomnia
"Healthy" hypersomnia
Parasomnias - A category of sleep disorders that involve abnormal and unnatural movements,
behaviors, emotions, perceptions, and dreams in connection with sleep.
Sleep terror
Bruxism (Tooth-grinding)
Mood disorders
Depression
Anxiety
Panic
Alcoholism
Sleeping sickness - a parasitic disease which can be transmitted by the Tsetse fly.
Snoring - Not a disorder in and of itself, but it can be a symptom of deeper problems.
Treatments for sleep disorders generally can be grouped into four categories:
rehabilitation/management
medications
None of these general approaches is sufficient for all patients with sleep disorders. Rather, the choice of
a specific treatment depends on the patient's diagnosis, medical and psychiatric history, and
preferences, as well as the expertise of the treating clinician. Often, behavioral/psychotherapeutic and
pharmacological approaches are not incompatible and can effectively be combined to maximize
therapeutic benefits. Management of sleep disturbances that are secondary to mental, medical, or
substance abuse disorders should focus on the underlying conditions.
Medications and somatic treatments may provide the most rapid symptomatic relief from some sleep
disturbances. Some disorders, such as narcolepsy, are best treated pharmacologically. Others, such as
chronic and primary insomnia, may be more amenable to behavioral interventions, with more durable
results.
Chronic sleep disorders in childhood, which affect some 70% of children with developmental or
psychological disorders, are under-reported and under-treated. Sleep-phase disruption is also common
among adolescents, whose school schedules are often incompatible with their natural circadian rhythm.
Effective treatment begins with careful diagnosis using sleep diaries and perhaps sleep studies.
Modifications in sleep hygiene may resolve the problem, but medical treatment is often warranted. [2]
Special equipment may be required for treatment of several disorders such as obstructive apnea, the
circadian rhythm disorders and bruxism. In these cases, when severe, an acceptance of living with the
disorder, however well managed, is often necessary.
[edit] Sleep medicine
Due to rapidly increasing knowledge about sleep in the 20th century, including the discovery of REM
sleep and sleep apnea, the medical importance of sleep was recognized. The medical community began
paying more attention than previously to primary sleep disorders, such as sleep apnea, as well as the
role and quality of sleep in other conditions. By the 1970s in the USA, clinics and laboratories devoted to
the study of sleep and sleep disorders had been founded, and a need for standards arose.
"has demonstrated expertise in the diagnosis and management of clinical conditions that occur during
sleep, that disturb sleep, or that are affected by disturbances in the wake-sleep cycle. This specialist is
skilled in the analysis and interpretation of comprehensive polysomnography, and well-versed in
emerging research and management of a sleep laboratory."[3]
Competence in sleep medicine requires an understanding of a myriad of very diverse disorders, many of
which present with similar symptoms such as excessive daytime sleepiness, which, in the absence of
volitional sleep deprivation, "is almost inevitably caused by an identifiable and treatable sleep disorder",
such as sleep apnea, narcolepsy, idiopathic central nervous system (CNS) hypersomnia, Kleine-Levin
syndrome, menstrual-related hypersomnia, idiopathic recurrent stupor, or circadian rhythm
disturbances.[4] Another common complaint is insomnia, a set of symptoms which can have a great
many different causes, physical and mental. Management in the varying situations differs greatly and
cannot be undertaken without a correct diagnosis.
Sleep dentistry (bruxism, snoring and sleep apnea), while not recognized as one of the nine dental
specialties, qualifies for board-certification by the American Board of Dental Sleep Medicine (ABDSM).
The resulting Diplomate status is recognized by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM), and
these dentists are organized in the Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine (USA).[5] The qualified dentists
collaborate with sleep physicians at accredited sleep centers and can provide oral appliance therapy and
upper airway surgery to treat or manage sleep-related breathing disorders.[6]
In the UK, knowledge of sleep medicine and possibilities for diagnosis and treatment seem to lag.
Guardian.co.uk quotes the director of the Imperial College Healthcare Sleep Centre: "One problem is
that there has been relatively little training in sleep medicine in this country ʹ certainly there is no
structured training for sleep physicians."[7] The Imperial College Healthcare site[8] shows attention to
obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSA) and very few other sleep disorders.