Narcolepsy Summary And Analysis

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Narcolepsy is a sleep disorder where the brain is unable to control sleep- wake cycles causing drowsiness. Narcolepsy is divided into two types; with cataplexy (type 1) and without cataplexy (type 2). In order to be diagnosed with narcolepsy, one must experience periods of an overwhelming need to sleep and sporadic napping daily for 3 months. For type 1 narcolepsy, they must experience cataplexy, sudden loss of voluntary muscle tone triggered by strong emotion. The person should also have a sleep latency of less than or equal to 8 minutes. (M.D, 2013)
Physician Thomas Willis is believed to be the first to discover symptoms of narcolepsy. In the 17th century, Willis began to write about patients’ reports of drowsiness and sudden naps. In the