What are the particular sleep problems of patients with movement disorders?
DR. COMELLA Some patients with Parkinson’s disease have REM sleep behavior disorder. They act out their dreams. Normally, sleepers are paralyzed while dreaming, but a central abnormality and a disturbance in the chemical messenger system in the brains of Parkinson’s patients allows them to move around while dreaming. Unfortunately, there are no FDA-approved drugs for the condition, which carries risks of injury to the patient and the bed partner. Interestingly, there is now some evidence that patients who are identified with REM sleep behavior disorder might also be at risk for the development of Parkinson’s disease. The first step in evaluation is to assess patients in a sleep clinic. If REM sleep behavior disorder is detected based upon this initial examination, then these patients would be tested for other neurological disorders. Tell us about the session on excessive daytime sleepiness. DR. COMELLA That presentation will be given by Robert Stickgold, Ph.D., from Harvard, who will e
