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Memory and Cognition in Narcolepsy

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Narcolepsy

Abstract

Many patients suffering from the sleep disorder of narcolepsy complain about cognitive dysfunction, most concerning frequent memory and concentration problems. These self-reports have not been consistently corroborated by any standardized assessment of cognitive function. While some investigations did not find significant differences in memory function between narcoleptic patients and healthy control subjects, others yielded mild impairments, which did not match the severity of subjective complaints. For attention and executive control, cognitive domains for which empirical data are as yet sparse, dysfunction is more consistently observed. Narcolepsy patients are primarily impaired on attention tasks with higher demands on attentional resources or those which require concentration across an extended period of time, suggesting an increased need for allocating cognitive resources to maintain alertness, thereby compensating for increased levels of sleepiness. This compensatory mechanism leads to performance in the normal range on short or less demanding tasks. If the remaining resources are not sufficient for the task at hand, performance decrements are observed, frequently in the form of a speed-accuracy trade-off. This mechanism underlies the general pattern of cognitive dysfunction in narcolepsy. Findings of compensatory recruitment of brain areas in healthy sleep-deprived subjects also provide evidence for this view.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neuropsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Ruhr-University of Bochum, Universitätsstraße 150, D-44780, Bochum, Germany

    Christian Bellebaum

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  1. Christian Bellebaum
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  2. Irene Daum
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Correspondence to Christian Bellebaum .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Narcolepsy Institute, Montefiore Medical Center, East 210 Street 111, Bronx, 10467, U.S.A.

    Meeta Goswami

  2. Dept. Pharmacology, Columbia University, West 168th St. 630, New York, 10032, U.S.A.

    S. R. Pandi-Perumal

  3. Sleep-Wake Disorders Center, Montefiore Hospital, East 210th Street 111, Bronx, 10467, U.S.A.

    Michael J. Thorpy

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Bellebaum, C., Daum, I. (2010). Memory and Cognition in Narcolepsy. In: Goswami, M., Pandi-Perumal, S., Thorpy, M. (eds) Narcolepsy. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-0854-4_20

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-0854-4_20

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4419-0853-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4419-0854-4

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