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Here is a compilation of essays on the ‘Types of Sleep Disorders’ for class 11 and 12. Find paragraphs, long and short essays on the ‘Types of Sleep Disorders’ especially written for school and college students.
Essay on the Types of Sleep Disorders
Essay Contents:
- Essay on Myoclonic Sleep Disorder
- Essay on Sleep-Induced Respiratory Impairment
- Essay on Narcolepsy-Cataplexy
- Essay on Kleine-Levin Syndrome
- Essay on Sleep Drunkenness
- Essay on Sleep Walking
- Essay on Night Terror Disorder
- Essay on Nightmares
- Essay on Bruxism
Essay # 1. Myoclonic Sleep Disorder (“Restless Legs”):
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It refers to the complaint of painful dysesthetic feelings from deep in the muscles of the calf of thighs. Very often the patients have to get up and walk around to obtain relief. These leg twitches are characteristically associated with EEG microarousals. The bed partners of these patients may complain of being kicked.
Prevalence:
Approximately, 10 percent of patients with chronic insomnia are diagnosed as suffering from this disorder which increases with age, more in men than in women. Nocturnal myoclonus often accompanies narcolepsy. Nocturnal myoclonus can present as a complaint of either insomnia or excessive daytime sleepiness.
Differential Diagnosis:
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From focal seizures in nocturnal period.
Management:
Benzodiazepines help in preserving sleep continuity without having an antimyoclonic effect. Recently gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB) has shown promising results. The tricyclic antidepressants and L-dopa exacerbate nocturnal myoclonus.
Essay # 2. Sleep-Induced Respiratory Impairment:
Sleep disordered breathing is an important cause of sleep fragmentation with advancing age.
Upper airways sleep apnoea is associated with loud snoring and abnormal body movements, moaning and groaning and sleepwalking; it may occur during non-REM sleep only, during REM and non-REM sleep, or during REM sleep and transitional stages.
Other abnormalities associated with this syndrome are hypertension, nocturnal hypoxia, nocturnal cardiac arrhythmias, depression, organic mental syndrome and impotence. It is often found in obese people when it may be called the Pickwickian Syndrome but may be found in people of normal weight.
Prevalence:
Approximately 10% of patients with persistent insomnia will be shown to have sleep-disordered breathing typically in the form of central sleep apnoea syndrome whereas 50-60% patients will present with excessive daytime sleepiness.
Management:
In milder forms of the disease, weight loss is often sufficient treatment. Severe cases of sleep apnoea respond favourably to chronic modified tracheostomy. Loud snoring can be effectively alleviated with a uvulopalatopharyngoplasty.
Essay # 3. Narcolepsy-Cataplexy:
The term narcolepsy literally means “sleep seizure”, and is characterized by the presence of some or all of the following four symptoms:
(i) Excessive sleepiness occurring as sudden bouts of sleep often associated with severe drowsiness in between attacks.
(ii) Cataplexy, which is loss of muscle tone and control often leading to falls, usually precipitated by emotional arousal;
(iii) Sleep paralysis.
(iv) Hypnagogic hallucinations (these hallucinations are common in auditory modality, although sometimes visual and tactile in nature, occur during the transitional period from waking to sleep and more rarely from sleep to wakefulness which are called hypnopompic).
Narcolepsy may occur in isolation or may be associated with psychiatric disorders such as depression and schizophrenia.
Prevalence:
It is equally prevalent in men and women and onset is usually around the age of puberty. There is often a family history.
Narcolepsy is lifelong disorder which often leads to social, vocational and psychiatric disability sometimes leading to accidents, drug abuse (alcohol) and depression. Patients with this disorder tend to go spontaneously into a REM sleep without passing through a non-REM like picture.
This can be demonstrated during multiple sleep latency test (MSLT) and is indeed pathognomonic of narcolepsy. Narcolepsy needs differentiation from complex partial seizure in which there are also characteristic movements such as lip smacking, rubbing hands etc.
Treatment:
The mainstay of treatment is stimulants (particularly methylphenidate, pemoline) or alerting tricyclic antidepressants (e.g., Protripytline or Nortriptyline). For the treatment of Narcolepsy-Cataplexy—iodine, GHB (gamma-hydroxybutyrate), MAO inhibitor (tranylcypromine) have also been used to patients refractory to stimulants or tricyclic antidepressant.
Essay # 4. Kleine-Levin Syndrome:
This disorder usually occurs in young men and consists of periodic episodes of sleepiness associated with intense hunger, irritability, excitement and aggression together with disturbances of movement, thinking and perception. Each episode may last from days to weeks with long periods of normal sleep in between, although the episodes may be followed by depression and insomnia.
This disorder needs to be differentiated from brain tumours (especially of temporal lobe, pituitary), chronic physical illnesses or psychiatric disorders. Treatment is same as of Narcolepsy.
Essay # 5. Sleep Drunkenness (Idiopathic Hypersomnolence):
Patients with this disorder may have difficulty in waking up completely and this is associated with confusion, disorientation, poor motor coordination, slowness, repeated return to sleep with long period of sleep and usually daytime sleepiness.
It has its onset in childhood or adulthood and occurs more commonly in males than in females.
The stimulants or stimulant type of antidepressant (low dose) may prove to be useful.
Essay # 6. Sleep Walking (Somnambulism):
The essential features are repeated episodes of a sequence of complex behaviour that frequently, though not always, progress without full consciousness or later memory of the episode-to leaving bed and walking about. The episode usually occurs between 30 and 200 minutes after onset of sleep (the interval of NREM sleep that typically contains EEG delta activity, sleep stages 3 and 4) and lasts from a few minutes to about half an hour.
Epidemiology:
At some time, 1-6% of children have this disorder. As many as 15% of all children experience isolated episodes. Sleep walking is rare in adults.
Clinical Picture:
During a typical episode, the individual sits up and carries out preservative motor movements, such as picking at the blanket and then performs semi-purposeful motor acts such as walking, dressing, opening doors, eating and going to the bathroom. The episode may terminate before the walking stage is reached.
Diagnosis:
Sleep EEG slow waves usually increase in amplitude in stage 4 sleep just preceding the episode; but EEG flattering i.e., arousal may occur before the episode.
Differential Diagnosis:
(i) Psychomotor Epileptic Seizures.
(ii) Psychogenic Fugues.
(iii) Sleep Drunkenness.
Management:
Parental education, reassurance and low doses of benzodiazepines or imipramine may suffice. The great majority of children or adolescents are asymptomatic by their 20s; the disturbance tends to be more chronic in adults.
Essay # 7. Night Terror (Sleep Terror) Disorder:
The essential features are repeated episodes of abrupt awakening from sleep, usually beginning with a panicky scream. The episode usually occurs between 30 and 200 minutes after onset of sleep (the interval of NREM sleep that typically contains EG delta activity, sleep stages 3 and 4) and lasts 1 to 10 minutes. This condition has also been called Pavor Nociurnus.
Epidemiology:
It is estimated that 1-4% children at some time have the disorder. The disorder is more common in males than in females.
During a typical episode, the individual sits up in bed with intense anxiety and displays agitated and preservative motor movements (such as picking at the blanket), a frightened expression, dilated pupils, profuse perspiration, pilorection, rapid breathing and quick pulse. An individual in this state is unresponsive to efforts of others to comfort him or her until the agitation and confusion subside. Morning amnesia for the entire episode is the rule.
There is no constantly associated psychopathology in children with this disorder. Adults with the disorder frequently do show evidence of other mental disorders such as generalized anxiety disorder.
Diagnosis:
The onset of the episode is accompanied by a twofold to fourfold increase in heart rate and the EEG quickly assumes in alpha pattern. (Normal EEG pattern of different waves can be remembered by Mneumonic, “D-Tab” i.e. Delta—0 to 4 cycles/sec.; Theta —4 to 7 cycles/sec; Alpha (Buerger waves) — 7 to 13 cycles/sec.; Beta— 13 to 30 cycles/sec.).
Differential Diagnosis:
(i) REM Sleep Nightmares
(ii) Hypnagogic Hallucinations
(iii) Epileptic Seizures
(iv) Nightmares (See Table 25.3)
Table 25.3 Nightmares versus Night Terrors
Management:
Parental counselling and reassurance is the treatment required in most cases. In some cases, low dose of diazepam or imipramine may be helpful.
Essay # 8. Nightmares:
This occurs during REM sleep and is differentiated from Sleep terror disorder by their:
a) Appearance in the middle and latter thirds of the night.
b) Milder anxiety experience.
c) Absence of a panicky scream upon awakening.
d) The distinct recall of detailed dream sequence in which a growing threat leads to awakening.
Reassurances and regular sleep schedules are helpful in managing most of the cases.
Essay # 9. Bruxism:
This is nocturnal grinding of teeth which may lead to wear and tends to occur during light sleep stages one and two (prominently in stage 2).
The condition is frequently not noticed by the sleeper except for an occasional feeling of jawache in the morning. However, bed partners and roommates are consistently awakened by the sound. Stressful conditions and alcohol intake exacerbate bruxism in many patients.
This disorder is best managed by counselling and reassurances or with low doses of benzodiazepines (for a brief period).