Narcolepsy cataplexy symptoms
I think this is really the critical point of validating what the patient perceives as being abnormal. And things that can look like cataplexy are often not cataplexy. If you see it, it’s really helpful, but it requires validation. Patients don’t present with cataplexy when they come in to see you. In a group of 50, 1 person had actually witnessed it. Avidan, MD, MPH: Most physicians have not, and I actually surveyed on this topic not too long ago. But I would say that most physicians have never seen it.Īlon Y. Thorpy, MD: I think all of us have, because we’re dealing with this commonly. I’m just curious, among everyone here, how many of you have witnessed cataplexy in your patients? Avidan, MD, MPH: It is extremely difficult, and I’ll tell you why. Thorpy, MD: How easy is it for physicians to recognize that somebody has cataplexy? Or can it be quite difficult?Īlon Y. Cataplexy is really what helps differentiate between the 2 types of narcolepsy, which is something we’ll go into in a little bit. It typically does not last for more than a minute. And it goes on fairly gradually for maybe a few seconds up to a minute. Patients may have a sagging of their jaw, or may slur their speech, or may even find that it’s hard to maintain their posture or muscle tone. Usually, positive emotions tend to bring on this episode. Cataplexy is really a unique condition that patients often describe as a gradual loss of muscle tone that is triggered when they hear a funny joke or they get surprised. Besides daytime sleepiness, there are at least 4 or 5 other symptoms that I think are useful for clinicians to appraise. Avidan, MD, MPH: This is the 1 condition where, besides excessive daytime sleepiness, hypersomnolence as the sine qua non of the disease, you cannot really make a diagnosis without daytime sleepiness as a fundamental symptom.
Thorpy, MD: After we’ve assessed the patient’s sleep-wake pattern, what are the symptoms we want to look for in narcolepsy?Īlon Y. They can also put you in touch with narcolepsy organisations or support groups, such as Narcolepsy UK.Michael J.
#NARCOLEPSY CATAPLEXY SYMPTOMS HOW TO#
They can advise you about how to minimise the effect narcolepsy has on your daily life. Speak to a GP if you have narcolepsy and it's making you feel low or depressed.
Not everyone with narcolepsy has the same symptoms.