Diagnostic aspects of narcolepsy
Citation Manager Formats
Make Comment
See Comments

This article requires a subscription to view the full text. If you have a subscription you may use the login form below to view the article. Access to this article can also be purchased.
Abstract
The diagnostic criteria for narcolepsy continue to evolve as more is learned about the features of this and other sleep disorders. A variety of symptoms have been said to distinguish narcolepsy from other sleep disorders, including cataplexy, character of daytime sleepiness, sleep paralysis, hypnagogic hallucinations, and automatic behavior. Other diagnostic assessments, such as determination of human leukocyte antigen (HLA) haplotype and findings of sleep laboratory assessments, also contribute to the differential diagnosis. As diagnostic and analytic techniques have become more sophisticated, however, it has become apparent that many of the characteristic features of narcolepsy-including the HLA-DR2 haplotype, sleep-onset REM sleep, and short sleep latency-may also be present in other sleep disorders. Although unambiguous cataplexy does not occur with other sleep disorders and is therefore a valuable symptom for diagnosis, it may occur with a few other neurologic disorders. Furthermore, the clinical assessment of cataplexy-like symptoms is not always straightforward. Current evidence suggests there is a fairly well-defined syndrome of narcolepsy-cataplex that is highly associated with specific HLA markers and REM sleep abnormalities. On the other hand, there is substantial clinical overlap between narcolepsy without cataplexy and idiopathic hypersomnia. Patients with features of narcolepsy who do not have definite cataplexy and patients with features of idiopathic hypersomnia must be assessed thoroughly because of the possibility that other sleep disorders are the cause of the symptoms.
Footnotes
Series editor: June M. Fry MD, PhD
AAN Members
We have changed the login procedure to improve access between AAN.com and the Neurology journals. If you are experiencing issues, please log out of AAN.com and clear history and cookies. (For instructions by browser, please click the instruction pages below). After clearing, choose preferred Journal and select login for AAN Members. You will be redirected to a login page where you can log in with your AAN ID number and password. When you are returned to the Journal, your name should appear at the top right of the page.
AAN Non-Member Subscribers
Purchase access
For assistance, please contact:
AAN Members (800) 879-1960 or (612) 928-6000 (International)
Non-AAN Member subscribers (800) 638-3030 or (301) 223-2300 option 3, select 1 (international)
Sign Up
Information on how to subscribe to Neurology and Neurology: Clinical Practice can be found here
Purchase
Individual access to articles is available through the Add to Cart option on the article page. Access for 1 day (from the computer you are currently using) is US$ 39.00. Pay-per-view content is for the use of the payee only, and content may not be further distributed by print or electronic means. The payee may view, download, and/or print the article for his/her personal, scholarly, research, and educational use. Distributing copies (electronic or otherwise) of the article is not allowed.
Letters: Rapid online correspondence
REQUIREMENTS
You must ensure that your Disclosures have been updated within the previous six months. Please go to our Submission Site to add or update your Disclosure information.
Your co-authors must send a completed Publishing Agreement Form to Neurology Staff (not necessary for the lead/corresponding author as the form below will suffice) before you upload your comment.
If you are responding to a comment that was written about an article you originally authored:
You (and co-authors) do not need to fill out forms or check disclosures as author forms are still valid
and apply to letter.
Submission specifications:
- Submissions must be < 200 words with < 5 references. Reference 1 must be the article on which you are commenting.
- Submissions should not have more than 5 authors. (Exception: original author replies can include all original authors of the article)
- Submit only on articles published within 6 months of issue date.
- Do not be redundant. Read any comments already posted on the article prior to submission.
- Submitted comments are subject to editing and editor review prior to posting.
You May Also be Interested in
Dr. Jessica Ailani and Dr. Ailna Masters-Israilov
► Watch
Related Articles
- No related articles found.
Alert Me
Recommended articles
-
ARTICLES
The clinical spectrum of narcolepsy and idiopathic hypersomniaMichael S. Aldrich et al.Neurology, February 01, 1996 -
Article
Comorbidity between central disorders of hypersomnolence and immune-based disordersLucie Barateau, Régis Lopez, Isabelle Arnulf et al.Neurology, November 18, 2016 -
Articles
Effect of age on MSLT results in patients with narcolepsy–cataplexyY. Dauvilliers, A. Gosselin, J. Paquet et al.Neurology, January 12, 2004 -
Article
Measurement of symptoms in idiopathic hypersomniaThe Idiopathic Hypersomnia Severity ScaleYves Dauvilliers, Elisa Evangelista, Lucie Barateau et al.Neurology, March 13, 2019