Given that approximately 1 in 2000 people in the United States has narcolepsy, and their symptoms are so dramatic, there is a good chance you know someone with this disorder. Narcolepsy is fundamentally a debilitating, lifelong disorder of excessive sleepiness and sleep dysregulation. In this episode, we will:
- define narcolepsy and learn how it presents in individuals
- trace the pathophysiology of the chemical disorder related to orexin/hypocretin dysfunction
- list the 5 main diagnostic characteristics of the disorder
- differentiate the causes (hereditary, autoimmune) of narcolepsy
- outline the diagnostic pathway and the pitfalls of narcolepsy testing
- learn how diagnostic momentum applies to the diagnosis of narcolepsy
- briefly touch upon treatments (but will largely leave this for a future episode)
Produced by: Maeve Winter
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Thanks for listening and sleep well!
