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Updated: Jun 17, 2026

Polygraphic Recording Procedure for Measuring Sleep in Mice
Published on: January 25, 2016
REM sleep without atonia in narcolepsy
Jitka Buskova1, Sona Nevsimalova, David Kemlink
1Department of Neurology, 1st Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic. vankjit@seznam.cz
Objective:
While there are a number of observations/quantifications indicating a greater proportion of REM sleep without atonia (RWA) in narcolepsy, the intra-night distribution of this parameter has not been evaluated.
Materials And Methods:
Thirty-four patients (15 men and 19 women; mean age 44.9 +/- 18.9) with narcolepsy-cataplexy were included in this retrospective study. The clinical diagnosis was confirmed by MSLT, video-polysomnography and HLA typing. Polysomnographic recordings were scored with particular regard to REM sleep without atonia (RWA) across all the nocturnal REM periods. RWA scoring was done according to a standard method.
Results:
The analysis showed a significant increase in the proportion of REM sleep without atonia during successive nocturnal REM periods in narcoleptic patients (p<0.01). No correlation was found between the percentage of RWA and the severity or duration of the disease, no age effect was documented.
Conclusion:
The study demonstrates for the first time an increasing amount of RWA during the night suggesting enhanced nocturnal REM sleep motor disturbance.
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