Hypersomnia

Hypersomnia Overview, Cause, Symptoms, Treatment, Medication

Hypersomnia is excessive sleepiness. It is an excessively deep or prolonged major sleep period. It may be associated with difficulty in awakening. It is believed to be caused by the central nervous system and can be associated with a normal or prolonged major sleep episode and excessive sleepiness consisting of prolonged (1-2 hours) sleep episodes of non-REM sleep.

Characteristics of hypersomnia

The characteristics of hypersomnia vary from one person to the next, depending on their age, lifestyle and any underlying causes. In extreme cases, a person with hypersomnia might sleep soundly at night for 12 hours or more, but still feel the need to nap during the day. Sleeping and napping may not help; the mind remains foggy with drowsiness. It is possible that a person has very disturbed sleep but is not aware of it.

Hypersomnia is one of the symptoms of major depression. In fact, people who are suffering from clinical depression may suffer from either insomnia (inability to fall asleep) or hypersomnia (excessive sleep) nearly every day. Bipolar patients may also experience hypersomnia during depressive periods.

Types of Hypersomnias

There are various types of hypersomnia:

1. post-traumatic hypersomnia,
2. recurrent hypersomnia,
3. Idiopathic Hypersomnia
4. normal hypersomnia.

DSM-IV diagnostic criteria for 307.44 primary hypersomnia

• The predominant complaint is excessive sleepiness for at least 1 month (or less if recurrent) as evidenced by either prolonged sleep episodes or daytime sleep episodes that occur almost daily.
• The excessive sleepiness causes clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning.
• The excessive sleepiness is not better accounted for by insomnia and does not occur exclusively during the course of another sleep disorder (eg, narcolepsy, breathing-related sleep disorder, circadian rhythm sleep disorder, parasomnias) and cannot be accounted for by an inadequate amount of sleep.
• The disturbance does not occur exclusively during the course of another mental disorder.
  The disturbance is not due to the direct physiological effects of a substance (eg, drug of abuse, medication) or a general medical condition.
• For a diagnosis of recurrent primary hypersomnia, periods of excessive sleepiness last at least 3 days and occur several times a year for at least 2 years.

What is the prognosis of Hypersomnia?

The prognosis for persons with hypersomnia depends on the cause of the disorder. While the disorder itself is not life threatening, it can have serious consequences, such as automobile accidents caused by falling asleep while driving. The attacks usually continue indefinitely.

Treatment of Hypersomnia

Treatment is symptomatic in nature. Because the underlying cause of idiopathic hypersomnia is unknown, treatment remains symptomatic in nature. Severe idiopathic hypersomnia is a disabling problem that often leads to permanent unemployment and responds poorly to medical treatment.

Behavioral approaches and sleep hygiene techniques are recommended, although they have little overall positive impact on this disease.

Medications that have been used in the treatment of this disorder include tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs), monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs), clonidine, levodopa, bromocriptine, amantadine, methysergide, pemoline, and modafinil.

Things to remember

• The characteristics of hypersomnia vary from one person to the next, depending on age, lifestyle and underlying causes. A major danger from hypersomnia is the increased risk of accidents.
• Hypersomnia is excessive sleepiness. There are many causes of excessive sleepiness, including insufficient or inadequate sleep, sleep disorders, medications and medical or psychiatric illnesses.
• Many people with hypersomnia can be helped or cured with a few adjustments to lifestyle habits.

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Site last updated: March 4, 2008

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