Sleep Disorders and Neurologic Diseases PDF

Preface

Sleep is a function of the brain. However, the ultimate physiological function of sleep remains enigmatic and unknown despite recent extensive research of this ubiquitous and important brain activity. Sleep intervenes in functions of somatic growth, regeneration, and memory. Sleep is important in medicine because it modulates quality of life, while its disorders provoke family pathology, disturb work routines, alter social activities, and, in general, affect the health of the individual (1).

Sleep medicine is a unique specialty with input from diverse areas of the medical sciences. Neurology, pulmonary, cardiology, pediatrics, psychiatry, otorhinolaryngology, and even dental medicine have important contributions to make. This diversity is the backbone of sleep medicine. But sleep medicine is branching out and it is clear that sleep, being a function of the brain, suffers dysfunctions that are distinctly neurological. Conditions such as epilepsy with expression only in sleep, neuromuscular disorders masquerading as sleep apnea, parasomnias mimicking seizure disorders, intrinsic hypersomnias with definite brain pathophysiology, sleep alterations in Parkinson's disease, the risk of stroke in sleep, the organic insomnias, the emerging autonomic dysfunctions of sleep, and so many other unique neurological disturbances can only be evaluated, studied, diagnosed, and managed with comfort by neurologists with special expertise in sleep disorders. Non-neurological physicians with a title of "sleep specialist" may not have sufficient training to tackle the above conditions, despite a sleep diploma or certificate, and will value having immediate access to this important segment of sleep medicine in the form of a book.

The subspecialty of neurosomnology will eventually emerge with strength comparable to that of other subspecialties in neurology. The consequence is that sleep centers may be compelled to add specialized neurosomnology, for which they will need a neurosomnologist on staff. Eventually, clinical neurosomnology will become a subspecialty of sleep medicine and neurology to incorporate all that is new, unique, and only available in the neurology of sleep.

This book serves as a reference for those who practice sleep medicine and encounter neurological pathology. The non-neurologist will value the special information contained herein, and the neurologist will find updated clinical science in their area of expertise. The chapters have a clinical orientation; procedural aspects and laboratory tests are not addressed, except where important to enhance the understanding of clinical manifestations. Some topics are covered in more than one chapter, not by accident but by design. This should not be viewed as duplication but rather a way of presenting diverse views of the same topic.

The authors are prestigious clinical neuroscientists with an international name in the field of sleep medicine. They were invited to update work presented in the first edition (2) or to collaborate with new information developed since this book was initially published only a few years ago. All collaborators have diligently compiled their chapters despite multiple other obligations and should be commended for their excellent work.