Somnambulism.

Somnambulism, also called sleepwalking, classified as a non-rapid eye movement sleep parasomnia, encompasses a range of abnormal paroxysmal behaviors, leading to sleepwalking in dissociated sleep in an altered state of consciousness with impaired judgment and configuring a kind of hierarchical continuum with confusional arousal and night terror. Despite being generally regarded as a benign condition, its potential severity entails social, personal, and even forensic consequences. This comprehensive review provides an overview on the current state of knowledge, elucidating the phenomenon of somnambulism and encompassing its clinical manifestations and diagnostic approaches.

Trajectory of maternal depression and parasomnias.

Maternal depressive symptoms are associated with poorer sleep quality in their children. Although parasomnias can occur at any age, this group of sleep disorders is more common in children. The aim of this study was to assess whether maternal depression trajectories predict parasomnias at the age of 11 years. Data were from a Birth Cohort of 4231 individuals followed in the city of Pelotas, Brazil. Maternal depressive symptoms were assessed with the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) at 12, 24, and 48 months, and 6 and 11 years postpartum. Maternal depression trajectories were calculated using a group-based modelling approach. Information on any parasomnias (confused arousals, sleepwalking, night terrors, and nightmares) was provided by the mother. Five trajectories of maternal depressive symptoms were identified: chronic-low (34.9%), chronic-moderate (41.4%), increasing (10.3%), decreasing (8.9%), and chronic-high (4.4%). The prevalence of any parasomnia at the age of 11 years was 16.8% (95% confidence interval [CI] 15.6%-18.1%). Confusional arousal was the most prevalent type of parasomnia (14.5%) and varied from 8.7% to 14.7%, 22.9%, 20.3%, and 27.5% among children of mothers at chronic-low, moderate-low, increasing, decreasing, and chronic-high trajectories, respectively (p < 0.001). Compared to children from mothers in the chronic-low trajectory, the adjusted prevalence ratio for any parasomnia was 1.58 (95% CI 1.29-1.94), 2.34 (95% CI 1.83-2.98), 2.15 (95% CI 1.65-2.81), and 3.07 (95% CI 2.31-4.07) among those from mothers in the moderate-low, increasing, decreasing, and chronic-high trajectory groups, respectively (p < 0.001). In conclusion, parasomnias were more prevalent among children of mothers with chronic symptoms of depression.

Behavioral and psychological treatments for NREM parasomnias: A systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Non-rapid eye movement (NREM) parasomnias are often benign and transient, requiring no formal treatment. However, parasomnias can also be chronic, disrupt sleep quality, and pose a significant risk of harm to the patient or others. Numerous behavioral strategies have been described for the management of NREM parasomnias, but there have been no published comprehensive reviews. This systematic review was conducted to summarize the range of behavioral and psychological interventions and their efficacy. METHODS: We conducted a systematic search of the literature to identify all reports of behavioral and psychological treatments for NREM parasomnias (confusional arousals, sexsomnia, sleepwalking, sleep terrors, sleep-related eating disorder, parasomnia overlap disorder). This review was conducted in line with PRISMA guidelines. The protocol was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42021230360). The search was conducted in the following databases (initially on March 10, 2021 and updated February 24, 2023): Ovid (MEDLINE), Cochrane Library databases (Wiley), CINAHL (EBSCO), PsycINFO (EBSCO), and Web of Science (Clarivate). Given a lack of standardized quantitative outcome measures, a narrative synthesis approach was used. Risk of bias assessment used tools from Joanna Briggs Institute. RESULTS: A total of 72 publications in four languages were included, most of which were case reports (68%) or case series (21%). Children were included in 32 publications and adults in 44. The most common treatment was hypnosis (33 publications) followed by various types of psychotherapy (31), sleep hygiene (19), education/reassurance (15), relaxation (10), scheduled awakenings (9), sleep extension/scheduled naps (9), and mindfulness (5). Study designs and inconsistent outcome measures limited the evidence for specific treatments, but some evidence supports multicomponent CBT, sleep hygiene, scheduled awakenings, and hypnosis. CONCLUSIONS: This review highlights the wide breadth of behavioral and psychological interventions for managing NREM parasomnias. Evidence for the efficacy of these treatments is limited by the retrospective and uncontrolled nature of most research as well as the infrequent use of validated quantitative outcome measures. Behavioral and psychological treatments have been studied alone and in various combinations, and recent publications suggest a trend toward preference for multicomponent cognitive behavioral therapies designed to specifically target priming and precipitating factors of NREM parasomnias.

Nocturnal agitation: From sleep state dissociation to sleep-related dissociative state.

Nocturnal agitation refers to a broad spectrum of symptoms from simple movements to aggressive behaviors with partial or complete loss of awareness. An accurate identification of its etiology is critical for appropriate therapeutic intervention. In children and young adults, distinguishing between non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep parasomnias and psychogenic non-parasomniac manifestations, a condition known as sleep-related dissociative disorder (SRDD), can be challenging. This review aims to summarize current clinical, neurophysiological, and epidemiological knowledge on NREM parasomnia and SRDD, and to present the pathophysiological hypotheses underlying these nocturnal manifestations. Sleepwalking, sleep terror and confusional arousals are the three main presentations of NREM parasomnias and share common clinical characteristics. Parasomniac episodes generally occur 30minutes to three hours after sleep-onset, they are usually short, lasting no more than few minutes and involve non-stereotyped, clumsy behaviors with frequent amnesia. The prevalence of NREM parasomnia decreases from 15-30% in children to 2-4% in adults. Parasomniac episodes are incomplete awakening from the deepest NREM sleep and are characterized by a dissociated brain activity, with a wake-like activation in motor and limbic structures and a preserved sleep in the fronto-parietal regions. SRDD is a less known condition characterized by dramatic, often very long episodes with frequent aggressive and potentially dangerous behaviors. SRDD episodes frequently occur in quiet wakefulness before falling asleep. These dissociative manifestations are frequently observed in the context of psychological trauma. The pathophysiology of SRDD is poorly understood but could involve transient changes in brain connectivity due to labile sleep-wake boundaries in predisposed individuals. We hypothesize that SRDD and NREM parasomnia are forms of sleep-related dissociative states favored by a sleep-wake state dissociation during sleep-onset and awakening process, respectively.

A challenging case of sexsomnia in an adolescent female presenting with depressive-like symptoms.

Sleep-related sexualized behaviors occur in the parasomnia known as sexsomnia, recognized as a variant of confusional arousals in the International Classification of Sleep Disorders, third edition. These instinctive behaviors of a sexual nature emerge from deep non-rapid eye movement sleep, and patients often present with distinguishing features within this sleep disorder category. There are often adverse psychosocial consequences and not uncommonly medicolegal implications. While associations to psychiatric consequences from the sexsomnia have been demonstrated and efforts to further typify this condition have been made, sexsomnia remains incompletely characterized in the more than 200 published cases to date, with male predominance. We now present the first reported case of an adolescent female with sexsomnia that was triggered by the onset of Crohn's disease and its treatment with azathioprine and with interpersonal consequences leading to an initial psychiatric consultation on account of depressive symptoms. These symptoms were deemed to be secondary to the sexsomnia. In addition to describing unusual and clinically relevant features in this case of sexsomnia, this original case provides insights into triggers, predisposing factors, perpetuating factors, and therapeutic considerations that are important for raising awareness in sleep clinicians, primary care providers, and mental health professionals. CITATION: Brás J, Schenck CH, Andrade R, et al. A challenging case of sexsomnia in an adolescent female presenting with depressive-like symptoms. J Clin Sleep Med. 2023;19(10):1845-1847.

Transtornos relacionados ao sono e comportamentos sexuais anômalos / Sleep Disorders and abnormal sexual behaviors

Esse artigo se baseia nas publicações de Schenck, especialista no assunto. Parassonias são comportamentos sexuais anômalos relacionados ao sono, caracterizados por movimentos complexos, emoções, percepções, sonhos e atividade do sistema nervoso autônomo. Podem provocar lesões, interrupção do sono, efeitos adversos à saúde e psicossociais. O diagnóstico é clínico: história médica e antecedentes (relatos de parcerias ou familiares e vídeos domésticos). Polissonografia é reservada para casos atípicos. O tratamento inclui medidas protetivas, esclarecimento ao familiar/cônjuge, controle dos fatores precipitantes, medicamento (clonazepam) e psicoterapia. A sexônia é uma parassonia (subtipo não REM), melhor estudada. Masturbação e tentativas inadequadas de obter relações sexuais (seguidas de amnésia ou lembrança vaga) são frequentes. A frequência em clínicas do sono é de 7,6% (homens 11,0%; mulheres 4,0%). Esses comportamentos surgem no curso de longa história de parassonia, desencadeando despertares confusionais. Terapia nasal com pressão positiva contínua nas vias aéreas pode controlar. Em homens, ereção peniana, associada à sexônia, é referida pela parceria. Providência importante é inquirir sobre sexônia, quando houver suspeita, uma vez que o paciente e/ou sua parceria não costumam falar, a menos que sejam solicitados ou por questões legais. Revisão de 18 casos médico-legais sobre violência relacionada ao sono e comportamento sexual durante o sono encontrou 9 casos em que sexônia foi alegada pela defesa. Foram apresentadas avaliações dos réus, as quais diferiram de caso para caso, alertando para a necessidade de consenso internacional. Abuso de álcool desqualifica a "defesa baseada em parassonia [sexônia]" em casos médico-legais.

A Novel Approach for Sleep Arousal Disorder Detection Based on the Interaction of Physiological Signals and Metaheuristic Learning.

The vast majority of sleep disturbances are caused by various types of sleep arousal. To diagnose sleep disorders and prevent health problems such as cardiovascular disease and cognitive impairment, sleep arousals must be accurately detected. Consequently, sleep specialists must spend considerable time and effort analyzing polysomnography (PSG) recordings to determine the level of arousal during sleep. The development of an automated sleep arousal detection system based on PSG would considerably benefit clinicians. We quantify the EEG-ECG by using Lyapunov exponents, fractals, and wavelet transforms to identify sleep stages and arousal disorders. In this paper, an efficient hybrid-learning method is introduced for the first time to detect and assess arousal incidents. Modified drone squadron optimization (mDSO) algorithm is used to optimize the support vector machine (SVM) with radial basis function (RBF) kernel. EEG-ECG signals are preprocessed samples from the SHHS sleep dataset and the PhysioBank challenge 2018. In comparison to other traditional methods for identifying sleep disorders, our physiological signals correlation innovation is much better than similar approaches. Based on the proposed model, the average error rate was less than 2%-7%, respectively, for two-class and four-class issues. Additionally, the proper classification of the five sleep stages is determined to be accurate 92.3% of the time. In clinical trials of sleep disorders, the hybrid-learning model technique based on EEG-ECG signal correlation features is effective in detecting arousals.

High-density EEG power topography and connectivity during confusional arousal.

Confusional arousal is the milder expression of a family of disorders known as Disorders of Arousal (DOA) from non-REM sleep. These disorders are characterized by recurrent abnormal behaviors that occur in a state of reduced awareness for the external environment. Despite frequent amnesia for the nocturnal events, when actively probed, patients are able to report vivid hallucinatory/dream-like mental imagery. Traditional (low-density) scalp and stereo-electroencephalographic (EEG) recordings previously showed a pathological admixture of slow oscillations typical of NREM sleep and wake-like fast-mixed frequencies during these phenomena. However, our knowledge about the specific neural EEG dynamics over the entire brain is limited. We collected 2 consecutive in-laboratory sleep recordings using high-density (hd)-EEG (256 vertex-referenced geodesic system) coupled with standard video-polysomnography (v-PSG) from a 12-year-old drug-naïve and otherwise healthy child with a long-lasting history of sleepwalking. Source power topography and functional connectivity were computed during 20 selected confusional arousal episodes (from -6 to +18 sec after motor onset), and during baseline slow wave sleep preceding each episode (from - 3 to -2 min before onset). We found a widespread increase in slow wave activity (SWA) theta, alpha, beta, gamma power, associated with a parallel decrease in the sigma range during behavioral episodes compared to baseline sleep. Bilateral Broadman area 7 and right Broadman areas 39 and 40 were relatively spared by the massive increase in SWA power. Functional SWA connectivity analysis revealed a drastic increase in the number and complexity of connections from baseline sleep to full-blown episodes, that mainly involved an increased out-flow from bilateral fronto-medial prefrontal cortex and left temporal lobe to other cortical regions. These effects could be appreciated in the 6 sec window preceding behavioral onset. Overall, our results support the idea that DOA are the expression of peculiar brain states, compatible with a partial re-emergence of consciousness.

Dream-Reality confusion: differential psychiatric diagnosis in narcoleptic subjects / Confusão sonho-realidade: diagnóstico psiquiátrico diferencial em narcolépticos

Dream-reality confusion (DRC) is the consequence of hypnagogic content confusion with real events and memories. Narcoleptic subjects eventually have DRC and can be misdiagnosed as schizophrenic or with another disorder with delusional or hallucinatory symptoms. Although dream-related experiences and hallucinatory perception share neurophysiological pathways, they are phenomenologically distinct. The lack of phenomenological intentionality in Dreamrelated perceptions, the different cognitive pathways for delusion generation, and other differences between mental disorders psychopathology, and DRC-related phenomena are here discussed. The lived world and awake experience interpretation, and dream neurobiology in narcoleptic subjects related to DRC, might indicate some hints for the mind-brain gap issue that still exists in neurology and psychiatry.

A confusão entre realidade e sonho (CRS) é a consequência da confusão do conteúdo hipnagógico com eventos e memórias reais. Sujeitos narcolépticos eventualmente têm CRS e podem ser diagnosticados erroneamente como esquizofrênicos ou com outro transtorno com sintomas delirantes ou alucinatórios. Embora as experiências relacionadas ao sonho e à percepção alucinatória compartilhem vias neurofisiológicas, elas são fenomenologicamente distintas. A falta de intencionalidade fenomenológica nas percepções relacionadas ao sonho, as diferentes vias cognitivas para a geração do delírio e outras diferenças entre a psicopatologia dos transtornos mentais e os fenômenos relacionados à CRS são discutidos aqui. A interpretação do mundo vivido e da experiência de vigília, e a neurobiologia dos sonhos em sujeitos narcolépticos relacionados à CRS, podem indicar algumas dicas para a questão do gap mente-cérebro que ainda existe na neurologia e na psiquiatria.

Disorders of arousal in 4 older men: evidence from clinical practice.

STUDY OBJECTIVES: To describe clinical and video-polysomnographic features of disorders of arousal (DoA) in older adults. METHODS: Four consecutive male patients with nocturnal motor behaviors underwent a clinical interview, neurologic examination, laboratory tests, brain magnetic resonance imaging, and nocturnal in-laboratory or 24- to 48-hour home video polysomnography. The patients repeated an evaluation after 6 months of follow-up, including a 48-hour home video polysomnography in 2 patients. RESULTS: The patients were aged 65-72 years, and 1 patient has Parkinson disease. Sleep-related behavioral episodes had begun from 12-55 years before our observation. Three patients presented with a positive family history for DoA. Sleep motor episodes were described as suddenly raising the head or trunk, sitting in bed, screaming, speaking, gesturing, and sleepwalking (in 1 patient). When questioned, all patients seemed confused, rarely reporting any dream-like content. We recorded 25 DoA episodes of different intensity and complexity arising from nonrapid eye movement sleep. The semiology of the episodes was similar to that described in younger patients, consisting of sleep terrors and confusional arousals. All patients presented with physiological rapid eye movement sleep muscle atonia. Medication therapy reduced the frequency of the episodes in 2/4 patients. CONCLUSIONS: DoA may begin in adulthood and persist or arise in older adults, sometimes causing sleep-related injuries. Motor patterns of DoA in older adults are similar to those of younger patients. A combined clinical examination and video polysomnography recording are crucial in establishing a definitive diagnosis of nocturnal motor behavior in all older adults and especially in those affected by neurodegenerative diseases. CITATION: Loddo G, Fragiacomo F, Mainieri G, et al. Disorders of arousal in 4 older men: evidence from clinical practice. J Clin Sleep Med. 2022;18(1):129-136.

The Arousal Disorders Questionnaire: a new and effective screening tool for confusional arousals, Sleepwalking and Sleep Terrors in epilepsy and sleep disorders units.

BACKGROUND: Arousal Disorders (DoA) include Confusional Arousals, Sleepwalking and Sleep Terrors. DoA diagnosis is mainly clinical but no validated questionnaires exist for DoA screening according to the criteria of the International Classification of Sleep Disorders, Third Edition. Recently our group proposed the Arousal Disorders Questionnaire (ADQ) as a new diagnostic tool for DoA diagnosis. The objective of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of the ADQ in a sleep and epilepsy center. METHODS: One interviewer blinded to clinical and video-polysomnographic (VPSG) data administered the ADQ to 150 patients consecutively admitted to our Sleep and Epilepsy Centers for a follow-up visit. The final diagnosis, according to VPSG recordings of at least one major episode, classified patients either with DoA (DoA group) or with other sleep-related motor behaviors confounding for DoA (nDoA group). RESULTS: 47 patients (31%) composed the DoA group; 56 patients with REM sleep behavior disorder, 39 with sleep-hypermotor epilepsy, six with night eating syndrome, and two with drug-induced DoA composed the nDoA group. The ADQ had a sensitivity of 72% (95% CI: 60-82) and a specificity of 96% (95% CI: 89-98) for DoA diagnosis; excluding the items regarding consciousness and episode recall, sensitivity was 83% (95% CI: 71-90) and specificity 93% (95% CI: 86-97). CONCLUSIONS: The ADQ showed good accuracy in screening patients with DoA in a sleep and epilepsy center setting. Diagnostic criteria related to cognition and episode recall reduced ADQ sensitivity, therefore a better definition of these criteria is required, especially in adults.

NonREM Disorders of Arousal and Related Parasomnias: an Updated Review.

Parasomnias are abnormal behaviors and/or experiences emanating from or associated with sleep typically manifesting as motor movements of varying semiology. We discuss mainly nonrapid eye movement sleep and related parasomnias in this article. Sleepwalking (SW), sleep terrors (ST), confusional arousals, and related disorders result from an incomplete dissociation of wakefulness from nonrapid eye movement (NREM) sleep. Conditions that provoke repeated cortical arousals, and/or promote sleep inertia, lead to NREM parasomnias by impairing normal arousal mechanisms. Changes in the cyclic alternating pattern, a biomarker of arousal instability in NREM sleep, are noted in sleepwalking disorders. Sleep-related eating disorder (SRED) is characterized by a disruption of the nocturnal fast with episodes of feeding after arousal from sleep. SRED is often associated with the use of sedative-hypnotic medications, in particular the widely prescribed benzodiazepine receptor agonists. Compelling evidence suggests that nocturnal eating may in some cases be another nonmotor manifestation of Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS). Initial management should focus upon decreasing the potential for sleep-related injury followed by treating comorbid sleep disorders and eliminating incriminating drugs. Sexsomnia is a subtype of disorders of arousal, where sexual behavior emerges from partial arousal from nonREM sleep. Overlap parasomnia disorders consist of abnormal sleep-related behavior both in nonREM and REM sleep. Status dissociatus is referred to as a breakdown of the sleep architecture where an admixture of various sleep state markers is seen without any specific demarcation. Benzodiazepine therapy can be effective in controlling SW, ST, and sexsomnia, but not SRED. Paroxetine has been reported to provide benefit in some cases of ST. Topiramate, pramipexole, and sertraline can be effective in SRED. Pharmacotherapy for other parasomnias continues to be less certain, necessitating further investigation. NREM parasomnias may resolve spontaneously but require a review of priming and predisposing factors.

Video-Polysomnographic Assessment for the Diagnosis of Disorders of Arousal in Children.

OBJECTIVES: To highlight the slow-wave sleep (SWS) fragmentation and validate the video-polysomnographic (vPSG) criteria and cutoffs for the diagnosis of disorders of arousal (DOA) in children, as already reported in adults. METHODS: One hundred children (66 boys, 11.0 ± 3.3 years) with frequent episodes of DOA and 50 nonparasomniac children (32 boys, 10.9 ± 3.9 years) underwent vPSG recording to quantify SWS characteristics (number of N3 sleep interruptions, fragmentation index, slow/mixed and fast arousal ratios, and indexes per hour) and associated behaviors. We compared SWS characteristics in the 2 groups and defined the optimal cutoff values for the diagnosis of DOA using receiver operating characteristic curves. RESULTS: Patients with DOA had higher amounts of N3 and REM sleep, number of N3 interruptions, SWS fragmentation, and slow/mixed arousal indexes than controls. The highest area under the curve (AUC) values were obtained for SWS fragmentation and slow/mixed arousal indexes with satisfactory classification performances (AUC 0.80, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.73-0.87; AUC 0.82, 95% CI 0.75-0.89). SWS fragmentation index cutoff value of 4.1/h reached a sensitivity of 65.0% and a specificity of 84.0%. Slow/mixed arousal index cutoff of 3.8/h reached a sensitivity of 69.0% and a specificity of 82.0%. At least one parasomniac episode was recorded in 63.0% of patients and none of the controls. Combining behavioral component by vPSG increased sensitivity of both biomarkers to 83% and 89%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: We confirmed that SWS fragmentation and slow/mixed arousal indexes are 2 relevant biomarkers for the diagnosis of DOA in children, with different cutoffs obtained than those validated in adults. CLASSIFICATION OF EVIDENCE: This study provides Class III evidence that SWS fragmentation and slow/mixed arousal indexes on vPSG accurately identify children with DOA.

Tradução, adaptação e avaliação das propriedades psicométricas da Arousal Predisposition Scale em crianças e adolescentes / Translation, adaptation and evaluation of the psychometric properties of the Arousal Predisposition Scale in children and adolescents / Traducción, adaptación y evaluación de las propiedades psicométricas de la Arousal Predisposition Scale en niños y adolescentes

A Arousal Predisposition Scale (APS) é um instrumento com 12 itens, elaborado para mensurar o nível de arousal de um indivíduo. O termo arousal, traduzido para o português falado no Brasil, significa excitação, isto é, a resposta do organismo frente a um estímulo externo ou estresse ambiental. A escala visa abordar o arousal como uma predisposição ou característica individual de excitação diante de um estressor ambiental. O objetivo deste estudo foi realizar tradução, adaptação e avaliação das propriedades psicométricas da APS para crianças e adolescentes. O estudo foi realizado com 189 alunos, de ambos os sexos, de escolas públicas, com idade entre 10 e 17 anos. A pesquisa foi dividida em duas etapas: a primeira foi a adaptação transcultural e a segunda etapa envolveu a avaliação das propriedades psicométricas da versão final. Os resultados apresentaram uma consistência interna dos itens aceitável para os grupos pré-adolescentes e adolescentes (alfa de Cronbach > 0,700). Não houve diferença significativa entre a escala total em médias de teste-reteste e uma correlação significativa de moderada a forte de validade de critério. A APS foi traduzida, adaptada e validada no Brasil para o grupo etário de 11 anos de idade. Destaca-se ainda a importância da utilização dessa escala por diferentes setores de saúde e da educação, em escolas de ensino fundamental e médio, contribuindo para identificar precocemente problemas de comportamento.

Arousal Predisposition Scale (APS) is a 12-item instrument designed to measure the arousal level of an individual. Translated into Brazilian Portuguese arousal means excitement, that is, the body's response to an external stimulus or environmental stress. The scale aims to address arousal as a predisposition or individual characteristic of excitement when facing an environmental stressor. Hence, this study sought to translate, adapt, and evaluate the psychometric properties of the APS for children and adolescents. Data was collected from 189 students, of all genders, from public schools, aged 10 to 17 years. The research was divided into two stages: first, the cross-cultural adaptation, followed by the evaluation of the psychometric properties in the final version. Results showed an acceptable internal consistency of the items for the pre-adolescent and adolescent groups (Cronbach's alpha > 0.700). The findings presented no significant difference between full-scale test-retest means and a significant moderate to strong correlation of criterion validity. The APS was translated, adapted and validated in Brazil for the 11-year-old age group. APS should be used by different health and education sectors in primary and secondary schools to help identify early behavioral problems.

La Arousal Predisposition Scale (APS) es un instrumento que consta de 12 ítems para estimar el nivel de arousal de un individuo. El término arousal significa excitación en portugués de Brasil, es decir, una respuesta del organismo frente a un estímulo externo o estrés ambiental. La escala pretende abordar el arousal como una predisposición o característica individual de excitación frente a un estrés ambiental. El objetivo de este estudio fue realizar la traducción, la adaptación, la evaluación y la valoración de las propiedades psicométricas de la APS para niños y adolescentes. Se realizó un estudio con 189 alumnos, de ambos sexos, de escuelas públicas, con edades de entre los 10 y 17 años. La investigación constó de dos etapas: la primera realizó la adaptación transcultural; y la segunda, la evaluación de las propiedades psicométricas de la versión final. Los resultados mostraron una consistencia interna de los ítems aceptable para los grupos de preadolescentes y adolescentes (alfa de Cronbach > 0,700). No hubo diferencias significativas entre la escala total en las medias de prueba-reprueba y una correlación significativa de moderada a fuerte como validez de criterio. Se realizó la traducción, la adaptación y la validación de la APS en Brasil para el grupo de edad de los 11 años. Se señala la importancia de la utilización de esta escala para los diferentes sectores de salud y de la educación, en la primaria y la secundaria, al contribuir a la identificación de problemas de comportamiento.

[Ulysses in the medical literature]. / Ulises en la literatura médica.

INTRODUCTION: Cultural manifestations are frequently used as a source of descriptors in the field of the health sciences. The story of Odysseus (Ulysses) is one of the oldest and most influential works of world literature and has given rise to many subsequent creations, with strong roots in popular culture. AIMS: To consider the use of the story of Odysseus in the medical literature, to describe the terms in which it is used, and to discuss its relevance. DEVELOPMENT: From a review performed in PubMed, 112 medical publications with references to the myth of Odysseus were found, out of a total of 343 results. Five different conditions named directly after Ulysses were found (three Ulysses syndromes, the Ulysses contract and the Ulysses conflict), together with two others that have been given the names of other characters who are part of the same cycle (Elpenor syndrome and Penelope syndrome), which we analyse in a critical manner referring to the original material from which they have been taken. CONCLUSIONS: The story of Odysseus constitutes one of the most frequent sources of inspiration in medicine, both for the creation of descriptors and for the use of similes, metaphors or other rhetorical figures, particularly in the area of neuroscience.

TITLE: Ulises en la literatura médica.Introducción. Es frecuente el empleo de manifestaciones culturales como origen de descriptores en el campo de las ciencias de la salud. La historia de Odiseo (Ulises) es una de las obras más antiguas e influyentes de la literatura universal y ha dado lugar a múltiples creaciones posteriores, con un fuerte arraigo en la cultura popular. Objetivo. Ponderar el uso del relato de Odiseo en la literatura médica, describir los términos en los que se emplea y discutir la pertinencia de estos. Desarrollo. Tras una revisión en PubMed, se hallaron 112 publicaciones de carácter médico con referencias al mito de Odiseo, de un total de 343 resultados. Se recogen hasta cinco entidades diferentes directamente nombradas a partir de Ulises (tres síndromes de Ulises, el contrato de Ulises y el conflicto de Ulises), y dos más sobre otros personajes que forman parte de su ciclo (síndrome de Elpenor y síndrome de Penélope), las cuales analizamos de forma crítica respecto al material original del que se parte. Conclusiones. La historia de Odiseo constituye una de las fuentes de inspiración más frecuentes en la medicina, tanto para la elaboración de descriptores como para el empleo de símiles, metáforas u otras figuras retóricas, particularmente en el área de las neurociencias.

Sleep disorders in anti-NMDAR encephalitis.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the sleep disorders in anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis (anti-NMDARe). METHODS: Patients recovering from anti-NMDARe were invited to participate in a prospective observational single-center study including comprehensive clinical, video-polysomnography (V-PSG) sleep assessment, and neuropsychological evaluation. Age- and sex-matched healthy participants served as controls. RESULTS: Eighteen patients (89% female, median age 26 years, interquartile range [IQR] 21-29 years) and 21 controls (81% female, median age 23 years, IQR 18-26 years) were included. In the acute stage, 16 (89%) patients reported insomnia and 2 hypersomnia; nightmares occurred in 7. After the acute stage, 14 (78%) had hypersomnia. At study admission (median 183 days after disease onset, IQR 110-242 days), 8 patients still had hypersomnia, 1 had insomnia, and 9 had normal sleep duration. Patients had more daytime sleepiness than controls (higher Barcelona Sleepiness Index, p = 0.02, and Epworth Sleepiness Score, p = 0.04). On V-PSG, sleep efficiency was similar in both groups, but patients more frequently had multiple and longer confusional arousals in non-REM (NREM) sleep (videos provided). In addition, 13 (72%) patients had cognitive deficits; 12 (67%) had psychological, social, or occupational disability; and 33% had depression or mania. Compared with controls, patients had a higher body mass index (median 23.5 [IQR 22.3-30.2] vs 20.5 [19.1-21.1] kg/m2; p = 0.007). Between disease onset and last follow-up, 14 (78%) patients developed hyperphagia, and 6 (33%) developed hypersexuality (2 requiring hospitalization), all associated with sleep dysfunction. CONCLUSIONS: Sleep disturbances are frequent in anti-NMDARe. They show a temporal pattern (predominantly insomnia at onset; hypersomnia during recovery), are associated with behavioral and cognitive changes, and can occur with confusional arousals during NREM sleep.

Cotard parasomnia: le délire de negation that occur during the sleep-wake dissociation?

None: Unpleasant dreamlike mentation can occur during non-rapid eye movement parasomnias, leading to associated panic attacks. The mentations are rarely remembered and are likely underreported. However, they may lead to significant personal distress and, if not addressed, may contribute to poorer clinical outcomes. Cotard le délire de negation are very rare nihilistic delusions, historically described with psychotic disorders. Their association with a variety of neurologic disorders, including migraine and cluster-headache, has also been reported. Here we present three cases of Cotard parasomnia during which distinct states of consciousness defined by nihilistic ideation occurred. Patients described believing they are dead or dying, while unable to perceive or experience their bodies in whole, or in part, as their own. A source analysis of the electroencephalographic fingerprint of these mentations suggests right-hemispheric hypoactivity subsequent to confusional arousals. Mechanistically, an aberrant activation of two major intrinsic brain networks of wakefulness, the salience network and the default mode network, is argued.

Two mutations in the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subunit A4 (CHRNA4) in a family with autosomal dominant sleep-related hypermotor epilepsy.

Sleep-related hypermotor epilepsy, or nocturnal frontal lobe epilepsy, as it was formerly called, is a focal epilepsy with mostly sleep-related seizures of hypermotor, tonic or dystonic semiology. Sleep-related hypermotor epilepsy may be attributed to a monogenetic cause with autosomal dominant inheritance. Mutations are described in different genes, including the genes for three subunits of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor. We present a family with members over four generations exhibiting sleep-related hypermotor epilepsy. Genetic testing was available for three members from three generations, and revealed two variants in the alpha-4 subunit of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (one of them being novel) which are likely to be disease-causing. As these mutations were identified in cis configuration (on the same allele), we do not know whether one of the variants alone or a combination of the two is responsible for the pathogenicity.

Big Data in sleep apnoea: Opportunities and challenges.

Sleep apnoea is now regarded as a highly prevalent systemic, multimorbid, chronic disease requiring a combination of long-term home-based treatments. Optimization of personalized treatment strategies requires accurate patient phenotyping. Data to describe the broad variety of phenotypes can come from electronic health records, health insurance claims, socio-economic administrative databases, environmental monitoring, social media, etc. Connected devices in and outside homes collect vast amount of data amassed in databases. All this contributes to 'Big Data' that, if used appropriately, has great potential for the benefit of health, well-being and therapeutics. Sleep apnoea is particularly well placed with regards to Big Data because the primary treatment is positive airway pressure (PAP). PAP devices, used every night over long periods by millions of patients across the world, generate an enormous amount of data. In this review, we discuss how different types of Big Data have, and could be, used to improve our understanding of sleep-disordered breathing, to identify undiagnosed sleep apnoea, to personalize treatment and to adapt health policies and better allocate resources. We discuss some of the challenges of Big Data including the need for appropriate data management, compilation and analysis techniques employing innovative statistical approaches alongside machine learning/artificial intelligence; closer collaboration between data scientists and physicians; and respect of the ethical and regulatory constraints of collecting and using Big Data. Lastly, we consider how Big Data can be used to overcome the limitations of randomized clinical trials and advance real-life evidence-based medicine for sleep apnoea.

Update on nonpharmacological interventions in parasomnias.

Parasomnias are abnormal behaviors that occur during sleep and can be associated, in particular during adulthood, with impaired sleep quality, daytime dysfunction, and occasionally with violent and harmful nocturnal behaviors. In these cases, therapies are often considered. Longterm pharmacological treatments are not always well tolerated and often have limited efficacy. Therefore, behavioral approaches remain an important treatment option for several types of parasomnias. However, the evidence-based approaches are limited. In the current review, we highlight results from various nonpharmacological techniques on different types of parasomnias and provide a glimpse into the future of nonpharmacological treatments in this field.