Sleepwalking Into a Risky Path: Expanding the Concerns for Parasomnias in the Elderly

Parasomnias are abnormal behaviors occurring during sleep. In older adults, rapid eye movement (REM) sleep behavior disorder (RBD) is the most common parasomnia, with a community prevalence of approximately 1% to 2% using polysomnography (PSG)1 and 7% to 13% using questionnaires.2,3 It is characterized by dream enactment behaviors (eg, yelling, punching, kicking) in the setting of loss of normal atonia during REM sleep, which can lead to injury to patients and their bed partners.4 It is well recognized that RBD is a harbinger of neurodegeneration secondary to accumulation of α-synuclein, increasing the risk for future development of Parkinson disease (PD), dementia with Lewy bodies, and multiple system atrophy.
Source: Mayo Clinic Proceedings - Category: Internal Medicine Authors: Tags: Editorial Source Type: research