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Parasomnias in Adolescents

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Sleep Disorders in Adolescents

Abstract

The term “parasomnia” is derived from the Greek “para” (meaning “alongside of”) and the Latin word “somnus” (meaning “sleep”). Parasomnias are abnormal behaviors emanating from or associated with sleep. Parasomnias are undesirable or unpleasant physical events or experiences that occur during entry into sleep, within sleep, or during arousal from sleep. They encompass abnormal sleep-related complex movements, behaviors, emotions, perceptions, dreams, and autonomic activity, resulting in sleep disruption, adverse health effects, untoward psychosocial effects, and resulting injuries. The events are manifestations of central nervous system activation. According to the International Classification of Sleep Disorders (ICSD-3), parasomnias may be categorized according to the sleep phase of origin: Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep parasomnias, non-REM (NREM) sleep parasomnias (disorders of arousal), or miscellaneous, when they arise independently of sleep stage. It is generally accepted that childhood parasomnias remit with age. Available data documenting the prevalence rates of various parasomnias in adolescents are relatively sparse.

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Abbreviations

ADs:

Arousal disorders

CA:

Confusional arousals

ICSD-3:

International classification of sleep disorders

NES:

Night eating syndrome

NFLE:

Nocturnal frontal lobe epilepsy

OSAS:

Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome

PLMS:

Periodic limb movements of sleep

PSG:

Polysomnography

REM:

Rapid eye movement

RDB:

REM behavior disorder

RLS:

Restless legs syndrome

SRED:

Sleep-related eating disorder

SSRI:

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor

ST:

Sleep terrors

SW:

Sleep-walking

SWS:

Slow wave sleep

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None of the authors have any financial support or conflicts of interest to disclose.

No off-label use of drugs or products has been discussed in the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Sanjeev V. Kothare M.D. .

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Kaleyias, J., Quattrucci Scott, R., Kothare, S.V. (2017). Parasomnias in Adolescents. In: Kothare, S., Quattrucci Scott, R. (eds) Sleep Disorders in Adolescents. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-41742-4_6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-41742-4_6

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