SC.9: Deep Dive – Narcolepsy

Approximate reading time: 1 minute

Unlike the other sleep disorders described in this section, a person with narcolepsy cannot resist falling asleep, often at inopportune times. These sleep episodes are often associated with cataplexy, which is a lack of muscle tone or muscle weakness, and in some cases involves complete paralysis of the voluntary muscles. Narcoleptic episodes take on other features of REM sleep. For example, around one third of individuals diagnosed with narcolepsy experience vivid, dream-like hallucinations during narcoleptic attacks (Chokroverty, 2010).

Generally, narcolepsy is treated using psychomotor stimulant drugs, such as amphetamines (Mignot, 2012). Narcolepsy is associated with reduced levels of the signalling molecule hypocretin in some areas of the brain (De la Herrán-Arita & Drucker-Colín, 2012; Han, 2012), and the traditional stimulant drugs do not have direct effects on this system.