Narcolepsy with cataplexy
Evidence: Antibody
Names
Description
Narcolepsy with cataplexy
Narcolepsy is a neurologic condition that causes a person to experience extreme sleepiness during the day without warning. When combined cataplexy, a similar onset of muscle weakness, the condition is suspected of being caused when the immune system attacks an important chemical in brain cells called hypocretin. The destruction of this chemical leads to the symptoms experienced by patients.
The first reports of narcolepsy being an autoimmune disease came in 2013, but retraction of that paper in 2014 put its status in doubt. Subsequent research and identification of the molecular mechanism by Mahoney et al. provides evidence and justifies classification as an autoimmune disease.
Patient Groups
Bloggers
None found
Prevalence
US Cases: 50,000 [Scheer 2017].
Typical Age of onset
Typical onset is between age 10 and 20.
Symptoms
Excessive daytime sleepiness and an inability to stay awake
Sleep disruption
Sudden, debilitating muscle weakness (cataplexy)
Paralysis while falling asleep or upon waking up (Sleep paralysis)
Vivid, dream-like experiences (hallucinations) while falling asleep or upon waking up
