Beyond RBD: covert REM sleep abnormalities in Parkinson's disease - PubMed
4 hours ago
- #sleep abnormalities
- #Parkinson's disease
- #REM sleep behavior disorder
- REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD) is a prodromal marker of Parkinson's disease (PD).
- Study investigates wider REM sleep disruptions beyond RBD in early-stage, drug-naïve PD patients.
- 25 PD patients and 23 healthy controls underwent polysomnography with high-density EEG.
- 36% of PD patients showed excessive REM sleep without atonia (RSWA).
- PD+RSWA patients exhibited increased occipital-parietal theta activity during REM sleep, correlating with disease progression.
- Sleep benefits consolidation of generalized motor learning (GML) in both groups, but REM sleep duration negatively correlated with GML benefits in PD patients.
- Subtle REM sleep abnormalities may impair sleep-dependent memory consolidation in early PD.
- REM sleep disruptions could serve as an early neurophysiological marker of PD progression and a therapeutic target.