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A sleep disorder, or somnipathy, is a medical disorder affecting an individual's sleep patterns, sometimes impacting physical, mental, social, and emotional functioning. [1] Polysomnography and actigraphy are tests commonly ordered for diagnosing sleep disorders.
A circadian rhythm is an entrainable, endogenous, biological activity that has a period of roughly twenty-four hours. This internal time-keeping mechanism is centralized in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of humans, and allows for the internal physiological mechanisms underlying sleep and alertness to become synchronized to external environmental cues, like the light-dark cycle. [4]
Somnolence is often viewed as a symptom rather than a disorder by itself. However, the concept of somnolence recurring at certain times for certain reasons constitutes various disorders, such as excessive daytime sleepiness, shift work sleep disorder, and others; and there are medical codes for somnolence as viewed as a disorder.
Idiopathic hypersomnia (IH) is a neurological disorder which is characterized primarily by excessive sleep and excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS). [1] Idiopathic hypersomnia was first described by Bedrich Roth in 1976, and it can be divided into two forms: polysymptomatic and monosymptomatic.
Hypersomnia can be secondary to disorders such as clinical depression, multiple sclerosis, encephalitis, epilepsy, or obesity. [17] Hypersomnia can also be a symptom of other sleep disorders, like sleep apnea. [17] It may occur as an adverse effect of taking certain medications, of withdrawal from some medications, or of substance use. [17]
Insufficient quality or quantity of night time sleep [5] Obstructive sleep apnea [6] Misalignments of the body's circadian pacemaker with the environment (e.g., jet lag, shift work, or other circadian rhythm sleep disorders) [7] Another underlying sleep disorder, such as narcolepsy, sleep apnea, [8] idiopathic hypersomnia, or restless legs syndrome
Both the sleep length and quality can be affected. A “shift-work sleep disorder” has been diagnosed in approximately 10% of shift workers aged between 18-65 years old according to the International Classification of Sleep Disorders, version 2 (ICSD-2). [160]
Dyssomnias are primary disorders of initiating or maintaining sleep or of excessive sleepiness and are characterized by a disturbance in the amount, quality, or timing of sleep. Patients may complain of difficulty getting to sleep or staying asleep, intermittent wakefulness during the night, early morning awakening, or combinations of any of these.