subject: Sleep disorder in youth [print this page] American scientists have discovered that one of the sleep disorders (parasomny) may predict dementia and parkinsonism for 50 years before their development, reports PhysOrg.
Conduct disorder in the phase of REM sleep - view parasomnii, where during REM sleep (when the most important and vivid dreams) skeletal muscles do not lose tone. Because of this, a person can involuntarily commit acts relevant to the content of sleep - from cries to aggressive behavior.
Dementia with Lewy bodies - a form of dementia, in essence and manifestations strongly reminiscent of Alzheimer's disease.
Polisystem degeneration (multiple system atrophy) - neurodegenerative disease, which, depending on the degree of destruction of various brain structures is manifested by various combinations of parkinsonism and other movement disorders and autonomic disorders.
Studying the history of the patients Mayo Clinic, researchers from this institution identified 27 people who had suffered conduct disorder in the phase of REM sleep for at least 15 years before the development of one of three neurodegenerative diseases: Parkinson's disease (13 patients), dementia with Lewy bodies ( 13 patients) or polisystem degeneration (one patient).
It turned out that the interval between the beginning of this parasomnii and onset of neurodegenerative disease may take up to 50 years. Average duration of this interval was about 25 years.
Says study author Bradley Beve (Bradley Boeve), this means that the processes in the brain, leading to the development of Parkinson's disease, dementia with Lewy bodies and polisystem degeneration begin to occur decades before the first symptoms of the disease. In this breakdown behavior in the phase of REM sleep is closely associated with these diseases, deserves special attention of researchers because it may be the key to their advance diagnosis
