Narcolepsy is a chronic neurological disorder that causes the brain's inability to regulate sleep-wake cycles normally. People with narcolepsy experience disturbed nocturnal sleep and excessive daytime sleepiness. They often fall asleep quickly upon entering REM sleep. One symptom is cataplexy, a sudden muscular weakness brought on by strong emotions. Narcolepsy is not caused by psychological problems but is likely due to genetic and environmental factors that affect biologic functions in the brain.

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8th March 2014 is Narcolepsy Day.
Narcolepsy also known as hypnolepsy , is a chronic neurological disorder
caused by the brain's inability to regulate sleep-wake cycles normally .
People with narcolepsy often experience disturbed nocturnal sleep and an
abnormal daytime sleep pattern, which often is confused with insomnia.
Narcoleptics, when falling asleep, generally experience the REM stage of
sleep within 5 minutes, while most people do not experience REM sleep
until an hour or so later.
One of the many problems that some narcoleptics experience is cataplexy,
a sudden muscular weakness brought on by strong emotions.
Narcolepsy is a neurological sleep disorder. It is not caused by mental
illness or psychological problems. It is most likely affected by a number of
genetic mutations and abnormalities that affect specific biologic factors in
the brain, combined with an environmental trigger during the brain's
development, such as a virus.

2. Narcolepsy
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3. What is Narcolepsy?
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A chronic sleeping disorder
Hard to stay awake for longer periods of time
Sudden attacks of sleep
Can fall a sleep under any circumstances
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4. Symptoms
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Excessive daytime sleeping
Sudden loss of muscle tone
Sleeping paralysis
Hallucinations
Low levels of Hypocretin/Orexin
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5. Causes
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Not exact known
Genetics
Infections
Sleeping pattern – NREM + REM
Hypocretin level
H1N1 vaccination
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6. Statistics
• Most common age of diagnostics is 20-40
years.
• Affect 0.05% of the population world wide
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7. Treatments and drugs
• No cure
• Stimulates:
- Modafilin
- Methylphenidate
• Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors:
- Fluoxetine
- Venlafaxine
• Tricyclic antidepressants:
- Protriptyline
- Imipramine
- Clomipramine
• Sodium oxybate (Xyrem)
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8. Daily life
• Recommendations:
• Complications:
- Public misunderstanding - Naps during the day
- Exercise
- Feelings and
- No nicotine and alcohol
relationships
- Consistent sleeping
- Physical harm
schedule
- Obesity
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9. Narcolepsy
Psychology
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10. Did you know that...
1 out of every 2000 Indians
suffer from this disease
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11. What is narcolepsy?
• A chronic sleep disorder characterized by
overwhelming daytime drowsiness and
sudden attacks of sleep
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12. What causes it?
• Caused by the brain’s inability to regulate
sleep-wake cycles normally.
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13. What are the symptoms?
• excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS)
• cataplexy (sudden loss of voluntary
muscle tone)
• vivid hallucinations during sleep onset or
upon wakening
• brief episodes of total paralysis at the
beginning or end of sleep
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14. Treatments?
• There is no cure for narcolepsy.
• However people with narcolepsy can try
to regulate their sleep patterns and avoid
drinking caffeine containing beverages
and alcohol before bedtime.
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15. Severity?
• The symptoms of narcolepsy develop
during the first two decades of the first
symptoms but as the patients get over
the age of 60 severity decreases.
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