ABSTRACT
Claudia M.Trenkwalder Paracelsus-Elena Klinik, Center of Parkinsonism and Movement Disorders Kassel, and
University of Göttingen 0-8493-1590-5/05/$0.00+$1.50 © 2005 by CRC Press
ABSTRACT
Almost all patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD) develop sleep-wake disorders with a subsequently impaired quality of life. However, the frequent sleep complaints in PD and other parkinsonian syndromes (PS) have not been sufficiently acknowledged until recently. Sleep-wake disturbances in parkinsonism consist of many different factors, including psychological and physiological alterations with disease specific and treatment specific contributions. Motor symptoms [e.g., mild to violent movements in REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD) or periodic limb movements, tremor, or early morning dystonia] are character istic features leading to sleep disturbances. Excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) has recently been discussed in more detail and seems more a disease-related than a drug-related problem. Respiratory disturbances, including the sleep apnea syndrome, need to be considered as frequent causes for sleep disturbances and EDS as well.
