We will need a referral from your physician before your appointment. Please call 73 to schedule a clinic visit. We typically treat narcolepsy with a combination of medications and suggestions for changes in behavior. During the MSLT, you are monitored at the Sleep Laboratory and have a series of nap trials during the day. The MSLT is a daytime test that follows the overnight sleep study. A daytime naps test, called a multiple sleep latency test (MSLT).In order to be diagnosed, you will need to come to the University of Michigan Sleep Disorders Center for: Sudden onset of muscle weakness in response to laughter or strong emotion (called "cataplexy").Sensation of dreaming while you are still awake (sleep-related hallucinations).Temporary inability to move when you wake up (called "sleep paralysis").The fifth symptom-cataplexy-does not occur in all individuals with narcolepsy. The first four symptoms do not automatically indicate narcolepsy. Approximately 1 in 4,000 people have narcolepsy, but the condition often goes undiagnosed. As an anecdotal example, one Allison Burchell, a sufferer of severe Cataplexy, has been sent to the morgue three times.If you fall asleep several times during the day-no matter how hard you try not to-you could have narcolepsy. DiagnosisĬataplexy in severe cases can cause vital signs to be hard to detect without a continuous auditory pulse oximeter (a well-known heart monitor). Ī person's efforts to stave off cataplectic attacks by avoiding these emotions may greatly diminish their lives, and they may become severely restricted emotionally if diagnosis and treatment is not begun as soon as possible. Monoamine oxidase inhibitors may be used to manage both cataplexy and the REM sleep-onset symptoms of sleep paralysis and hypnagogic hallucinations. Xyrem, the brand-name of the compound (sodium)gamma-Hydroxybutyrate GHB, has been shown to treat not only cataplexic attacks, but in narcoleptics, it has also been shown to significantly reduce daytime sleepiness. However these can have unpleasant side-effects and so have been generally replaced by newer drugs such as Effexor, a more recent antidepressant. For many years, cataplexy has been treated with tricyclic antidepressants such as imipramine, clomipramine or protriptyline. Treatmentĭespite its relation to narcolepsy, in most cases, cataplexy must be treated differently and separate medication must be taken. For example, a narcoleptic may not pick up a baby because they are afraid they may drop them. It can cause accidents and be embarrassing when it happens at work or with friends. When cataplexy happens often, or cataplexy attacks make patients fall or drop things, it can have serious affects on normal activities. These attacks are triggered by strong emotions such as exhilaration, anger, fear, surprise, orgasm, awe, embarrassment and laughter.Ĭataplexy may be partial or complete, affecting a range of muscle groups, from those controlling facial features to (less commonly) those controlling the entire body. Usually the speech is slurred, vision is impaired (double vision, inability to focus), but hearing and awareness remain normal. The term cataplexy originates from the Greek kata, meaning down, and plexis, meaning a stroke or seizure.Īstrocytoma, Encephalitis, Glioblastoma, Glioma, Head trauma, Hydrocephalus, Hypnagogic hallucinations, Hypocretin deficiency, Hypothalamus lesions, Multiple sclerosis, Narcolepsy, Neurodegenerative diseases, Niemann pick disease, Sleep attacks, Sleep paralysisĪstrocytoma, Glioblastoma, Glioma, Paraneoplasia syndrome, Subependynoma, Surgical tumor resectionĬataplexy manifests itself as muscular weakness which may range from a barely perceptible slackening of the facial muscles to the dropping of the jaw or head, weakness at the knees, or a total collapse. Cataplexy is sometimes confused with epilepsy, where a series of flashes or other stimuli cause superficially similar seizures. Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Luke Rusowicz-Orazem, B.S.Ĭataplexy is a medical condition which often affects people who have narcolepsy, a disorder whose principal signsĪre EDS (Excessive Daytime Sleepiness), sleep attacks, sleep paralysis, hypnopompic hallucinations and disturbed night-time sleep. Risk calculators and risk factors for CataplexyĮditor-In-Chief: C. US National Guidelines Clearinghouse on Cataplexyĭirections to Hospitals Treating Cataplexy For patient information click here CataplexyĪrticles on Cataplexy in N Eng J Med, Lancet, BMJ
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