Common Sleep Disorders

In brief

 

• Obstructive Sleep Apnea – Blockage of the airway during sleep, more severs in overweight individuals, chronic snorers, persons sleeping on their backs, or persons with lung diseases.

• Central Apnea – Neurologic dysfunction usually due to trauma to the brain, resulting from premature birth, accidental injury or cerebral vascular accident (stroke).

• Narcolepsy – Neurological sleep disorder that causes the person to fall asleep at any given time. A person with narcolepsy has no control over sleep-awake states.Symptoms: Paralysis or muscle weakness caused by extreme emotions, excessive daytime somnolence, loss of muscle control at sleep onset or waking, and vivid dreamlike experience at drowsiness.

• Insomnia – The inability to initiate of maintain sleep. Usually a learned behavior, insomnia can have a physiological basis. Transient insomnia lasts for two to three nights; Short-term lasts two to three weeks, and chronic insomnia lasts more than three weeks.

• Gastroesophagcal Reflux – Manifested by stomach acid propelled up the esophagus causing continual swallowing during sleep and causing microarousals.

• Nocturnal Myoclonus – Muscle contractions in the calf muscles of the legs. Usually paired with Restless Leg Syndorme, the need to meve legs prior to sleep. Myoclonus are usually rhythmic, occurring every 15-30 seconds and lasting 2-5 seconds. These movements cause micoarousals.

• Parasomnias – Usually associated with nightmares, but do not occur in REM. These disorders are usually associated with childhood and should subside with adulthood.

• Disorder of Arousal – Includes sleepwalking, confusional arousals, sleep terrors, and sleep talking.

• Hypnagogic Hallucinations and Sleep Paralysis – Usually a result of sleep deprivation.

• Nocturnal Seizures

• REM Behavior Disorder – “Acting out” of dream contents, and is common in older men.

• Bruxism – Teeth grinding during sleep is fairly common and will damage teeth.

• Sleep starts – Jerk of entire body, visual bright light sensation or auditory sensation of a loud pop.

• Rythmic movement disorder – Headbanging, headrolling or body rocking. Behavior disorder.