The REM Sleep Behavior Disorder
The REM Sleep Behavior Disorder (RBD) is characterized clinically by a history of changes in the nature of the patients' dreams
(they are more action-packed) and motor behavior (its is more action packed) during REM sleep that correlate with the
simultaneously occurring dream-mentation. The polysomnographic (PSG) findings consist of the intermittent appearance of
markedly increased tonic and phasic EMG activity during REM sleep Clinically, RBD usually responds exquisitely and persistently
to the nightly administration of clonazepam. While taking clonazepam, patients report that their dreams have reverted to a less
action-packed variety, and that their dream-enacting motor and verbal behaviors have ceased or are much less bothersome.
However, aside from some relatively subtle phasic EMG reduction,[2] the REM sleep-related EMG activity remains relatively
unchanged following clonazepam administration. It is often impossible, by PSG study before and after clonazepam, to identify
which PSG is baseline, and which was performed following the administration of clonazepam.
It is clear from both animal experiments[3] and from human conditions (notably narcolepsy and multi-system degenerative
disorders)[4] that REM sleep may be associated with a lack of tonic or phasic atonia (REM without atonia) without there being
clinical symptoms of dream-enacting behaviors. Therefore, REM without atonia appears to be necessary, but not sufficient, for the
appearance of the full-blown RBD syndrome.
This raises an interesting question: What and/or where is the mechanism of action of clonazepam in the reduction of the
dream-related motor behavior during REM sleep? Is at the locomotor center, or s...
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...us. There is a lot of literature available on how various conditions or chemicals effect the amount of time we spend in
either Slow-Wave or REM sleep, and I hope future essays will delve more fully into these subjects. Luckily for researchers
studying the subject, the origins in the brain responsible for sleep are still not fully understood and thus, facilitate continual probes
into how different parts of the brain are behaving during sleep and how to influence those parts to give us the best or worst
possible night of sleep. In the next section, I will look at a couple of hypotheses on:
There is nothing better for getting the day started off right than waking up in a good mood. This is especially true if we weren't in
the best of moods when we went to sleep. To view the rest of this essay you must be a screwschool member click here to become
a member.
Siegel then describes the two different types of sleep as non-REM and REM sleep. During non-REM sleep “the muscles are relaxed but maintain some tone, breathing is regular, the cerebral cortex generates high-voltage waves, and consumption of energy by the brain is minimal” (77). A person experiencing REM sleep, however, has irregular breathing and heart rate, the cerebral cortex generates waves almost like those seen in a waking state, rapid eye movements, high brain metabolism, lack of all muscle tone, and dreams occur. Normally people enter into non-REM sleep immediately upon falling asleep; however, narcoleptics enter into REM sleep first. This causes narcoleptics t...
All mammals exhibit Rapid-Eye-Movement, or REM, sleep, and yet on certain levels this type of sleep would seem to be disadvantageous. During REM sleep, which is when most dreams occur, the brain uses much more energy than during non-REM (NREM) sleep. (1) This "waste" of energy coupled with the increased vulnerability of this state on account of the body's paralysis at this time suggests that there must be a very important reason, or reasons, for the existence of REM sleep and in extension of dreams. Determining the function of dreams, however, has proved very problematic with many arguments which directly oppose each other. Some of the primary functions of dreaming have been tied to is role in development, its production of neuro-proteins, and also to how it may allow for the "rehearsal" of neurons and neuronal pathways. The influence of dreaming on learning is one of the hottest debates. Some argue that dreams aid in learning, others that dreams aid in forgetting, and yet others that dreams have no effect on learning or memory. That REM sleep seems to aid in development might argue that REM sleep may be connected to learning. It seems that most scientists believe that REM sleep aids in certain memory consolidations although some argue that it actually leads to "reverse learning.
As we all know, sleep is an important part of our lives. Without the proper amounts and type of sleep, fatigue and other problems can arise. Generally, we can clearly distinguish between a sleeping person and a person that is awake. With sleeping disorders, the distinction between an awake person and a sleeping person becomes more intriguing. What is the difference, how does it relate to the I-function and consciousness? Each sleeping disorder has its own unique answer to this question. It is essential to understand sleep to fully appreciate it. However, many aspects of it remain a mystery. We do have some degree of understanding of sleep. Within our sleep cycle a type of unusual sleep occurs, REM sleep. During this cycle the periods of REM sleep are interspersed with slow wave sleep in alternation. Each period of REM sleep (there are usually 4 or 5 periods a night) lasts for approximately 5 to 30 minutes. During these periods a sleep paradox occurs. An enormous amount of brain activity takes place; this is sometimes even more activity then when awake. This clearly indicates that sleep is not simply to rest our mind and not to think. So, during this period our brains are extremely active, yet there is usually no input or output. During this period, along with the random eye movement (REM), there is a complete loss of muscle tone. Essentially, at this point, the motor system is paralyzed (normally the body inhibits any movement). The autonomic nervous system also alters its behavior. The regulation of body temperature is lost and the blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rates shows increased variability. REM sleep can be detected by measuring the electrical activity of the brain with an electroencephalogram. At this point, the EEG will show the same pattern of activity as when the brain is awake.
We live our entire life in two states, sleep and awake1. These two states are characterized by two distinct behaviors. For instance, the brain demonstrates a well-defined activity during non-REM sleep (nREM) that is different when we are awake. In the study of sleep by Huber et. al., the authors stated that sleep is in fact a global state2. It is unclear whether this statement means that sleep is a state of global behavioural inactivity or the state of the global nervous system. The notion that sleep is a global state of the nervous system served as basis for sleep researchers to search for a sleep switch. The discovery of the sleep switch, in return, provided evidence and enhanced the notion that sleep is a global state of the nervous system. The switch hypothesis developed from the fact that sleep can be initiated without fatigue and it is reversible1. It was hypothesized that there is something in the brain that has the ability to control the whole brain and initiate sleep. Studies have found a good candidate that demonstrated this ability3. They found a group of neurons in the Ventrolateral Preoptic (VLPO) nucleus. It was a good candidate because it was active during sleep, has neuronal output that can influence the wakefulness pathway, and lesion in the area followed reduce sleep3. The idea that there is something that can control the whole brain and result sleep state supports the idea that sleep is a global state of the nervous system.
The discovery of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep suggested that sleep was not, as it was thought to be, a dormant state but rather a mentally dynamic one. Your brain is, in fact, very active in this state, almost to the level at which it is when a person is awake. Yet during this active stage in which most dreams occur, the movements of the rest of the body are completely stilled. To imagine this paralysis during dreams not occurring is a frightful image, since in many cases dreams are violent and active. When the neurotransmitters that control the movement of the body do not work properly the person develops REM sleep behavioral disorder (RBD).
In the field of psychology, the concept of sleep has raised multiple questions over time. Psychologists are constantly doing studies on people while they sleep to diagnose sleep disorders. Using EEG readings, they study and record brain waves and muscle movements that occur while the participant is asleep. Sometimes they even wake the person up so they can observe what happens to the brain when you are woken up in different stages of sleep. In order to diagnose sleep disorders, we must first understand what exactly sleep is. Sleep is generally made up of multiple 90-minute cycles. Every time sleep occurs, we cycle through four stages followed by a fifth stage of REM (Rapid Eye Movement). The final stage proves the brain is functioning even
Differences between NREM and REM can be measured using an electroencephalogram (EEG), electrooptogram (EOG), and electromyelogram (EMG), which measure brainwaves, eye-movement, and muscle tone, respectively. REM is categorized by high-frequency, low-amplitude, more irregular waves in EEG, rapid, coordinated movement in EOG, and weak EMG. During this type of sleep, brain activation heightens, breathing and heart rates increase, and body movement is paralyzed. Because the person is highly aroused, like in waking, but also very asleep, REM sleep is also called paradoxical sleep (6).
Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep behavior disorder (RBD) is a disorder that is characterized by failure to exhibit muscle paralysis or atonia during REM sleep. Along with lack of muscle atonia, patients with RBD display behaviors of “acting out” their dreams, which can be harmful to themselves or others around them (Gagnon, Postuma, Mazza & Montplaisir, 2006, p. 425). It has been reported that the dreams are usually very vivid nightmares or close to them and are usually violent, which are expressed through running, punching, kicking, and more injurious behavior (Paparrigopoulos, 2005, p. 294). In 1986 Schenck and his colleagues recognized RBD as a clinical disorder and then in 1990 it was included into the “International Classification of Sleep Disorders” (Gagnon et al., 2006, p. 425).
REM is rapid eye movement which in sleep stage characterized by eye rapid movement and increased dreaming. Nom-REM is non rapid eye movement stages of sleep that alternate with REM stages during sleep cycles. Going to sleep means losing awareness and falling to respond to a stimulus that would produce a response in the waking state. At least 50 million Americans suffer from chronic, long term sleeping disorders and 20 million other Americans have regular sleep problems. The scientific study of typical sleep patterns has yielded further insights into several sleep disorders such as; sleep talking, sleepwalking, nightmares, night terrors, insomnia, apnea, and narcolepsy. Nightmares are frightening dreams that occur during REM sleep stage and usually are remembered. Night terrors are frightening and terrifying dreams that occur during NREM sleep state that which a person is difficult to awaken and doesn 't remember the content. Insomnia is a sleep disorder characterized or remaining asleep throughout the night. Apnea is a sleep disorder characterized by breathing difficulty during the night and feelings of exhaustion during the day. Narcolepsy is a hereditary disorder by suddenly nodding off during the day and sudden loss of muscle toe following movements of emotional
Your body, even though it is paralysed in this stage, relaxes. REM sleep is vital for the body,
Brain waves are fundamental in that they enable a sleep researcher to understand the process of sleep. The main brain wave considered is referred to as gross brain wave activity which is measured using an electroencephalogram because brain waves vary from one area of the brain to another. There are two types of waves namely beta waves and alpha waves with the former being associated with the state of being wakeful with them having high frequency but low amplitude while alpha waves being associated with not only the state of relaxation but also the state of peacefulness with them being characterized by lower frequency but with increased amplitude. As a result, beta waves are desynchronous while alpha waves are synchronous. Sleep occurs in different stages with these stages exhibiting different forms of alpha and beta waves with stage one and two of sleep being characterized by theta waves while stage three and four of sleep being characterized by delta
Kales, A. (1972). The evaluation and treatment of sleep disorders : Pharmacological and psychological studies. In M. Chase (ed.)The Sleeping Brain. Los Angeles : Brain Information Service.
Stern and Morgane back up Oswold’s theory about REM sleep with their activation synthesis theory. They believe, with support from research that shows that when people take antidepressants, their REM sleep decreases, that REM sleep is a time for synthesizing nor-adrenaline and dopamine, which are used as antidepressants. This is however, a correlation study which means it doesn’t show causality.
We experience two phases of sleep which repeat themselves every ninety to one hundred and ten minutes, achieving approximately five complete cycles per night. The phases are non- rapi...
Kelly, W. E., Kelly, K. E., & Clanton, R. C. (2001). The relationship between sleep