Information On Rem Sleep Behavior Disorders

 

In REM sleep behavior disorder the person displays abnormal behavior with rapid movement of the eyeballs while sleeping. It is also characterized as RBD, a sleep parasomnia. It is a stage where an individual suffering from this disorder gets intense, vivid and has violent dreams. The person actually starts acting depending on what he is dreaming. These actions could be of basic nature to complex movements. For example an individual can either move his feet in slumber or even scream whilst dreaming. This can be dangerous for the person who sleeps next to the sufferer because of the violent actions that are created by the sufferer while in a dream.

REM sleep behavior disorder is found in people between the age of 15 and above, but it's mainly a illness affecting aged individuals. It is mostly seen in individuals who belong towards the age group of 60 years. The illness is more frequent in men than in women. According to a survey, one-tenth of the sufferers are female and the rest are male. Thus there are more frequent reports of men hurting their female partners while dreaming than women hurting their male partners.

Information On Rem Sleep Behavior Disorders

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The most common behaviors made by the individual suffering from the REM sleep behavior disorder disease are:

* Sleep violation

* Sleep walking

* Talking

* Sitting

* Take hold of

* Screaming

* Kicking

* Punching

* Jumping from bed

* Waving arms

Thus you can understand the condition of the individual sleeping next to the sufferer. This illness is harmful for both the person and his or her partner. Throughout the REM sleep, a person's breathing becomes irregular; they make rapid eye movements, experience high blood pressure and also there's loss of muscle atonia (paralysis). However, during the dreams, the brain is highly active and electrical activity of brain recorded by EEG is same as when recorded when the person is awake. About 20-25 percent of rest time involves REM sleep behavior disorder.

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Information On Rem Sleep Behavior Disorders

The trigger of this disorder in men according to the research is due to the supplementary deterioration of brainstem neurons found in their brains. This disorder develops together with degenerative neurological conditions such as Parkinson illness, multisystem atrophy, diffuse Lewy body dementia, and Shy-Drager syndrome. Another trigger is connected to alcohol withdrawal, tricyclic antidepressant or serotonin reuptake inhibitor use or other kinds of antidepressants.

 

Treatment of this disease is possible via medication and lifestyle changes. The typical medication is the anti-convulsant drug clonazepam. Though it's not clear just how it works to reestablish the muscle atonia, but there is a question whether or not it really restores the atonia or suppresses muscle activity.

Regarding lifestyle changes, you can keep yourself at the safe side by placing mattresses on the floor or maybe a cushion around the bed. This will protect the patient and the person sleeping next to the patient from getting hurt if the patient jumps off the bed. Buy a bed with cushioned headboard and place it away from mirrors and windows. You can even think about a bed with protected bedrails and also remove any other dangerous objects inside the room. Avoiding alcohol and following a sleep routine also helps.

 

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