Hypersomnia
| Hypersomnia | |
|---|---|
| Classification and external resources | |
| Specialty | Psychiatry, Sleep medicine |
| ICD-10 | G47.1, F51.1 |
| MeSH | D006970 |
Hypersomnia, or hypersomnolence, is a neurological disorder of excessive time spent sleeping or excessive sleepiness. It can have many possible causes and can cause distress and problems with functioning. In the 5th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, (DSM-5), hypersomnolence, of which there are several subtypes, appears under sleep-wake disorders.
The main symptom of hypersomnia is excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS), or prolonged nighttime sleep, which has occurred for at least 3 months prior to diagnosis.
Hypersomnia affects approximately 5% of the general population, "with a higher prevalence for men due to the sleep apnea syndromes."
"The severity of daytime sleepiness needs to be quantified by subjective scales (at least the Epworth Sleepiness Scale) and objective tests such as the multiple sleep latency test (MSLT)." The Stanford sleepiness scale (SSS) is another frequently-used subjective measurement of sleepiness. After it is determined that EDS is present, a complete medical examination and full evaluation of potential disorders in the differential diagnosis (which can be tedious, expensive and time-consuming) should be undertaken.
Hypersomnia can be primary (of central/brain origin), or it can be secondary to any of numerous medical conditions. More than one type of hypersomnia can coexist in a single patient. Even in the presence of a known cause of hypersomnia, the contribution of this cause to the complaint of EDS needs to be assessed. When specific treatments of the known condition do not fully suppress EDS, additional causes of hypersomnia should be sought. For example, if a patient with sleep apnea is treated with CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) which resolves their apneas but not their EDS, it is necessary to seek other causes for the EDS. Obstructive sleep apnea “occurs frequently in narcolepsy and may delay the diagnosis of narcolepsy by several years and interfere with its proper management.”
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