About Hypersomnia

Hypersomnia is a sleep disorder that makes a patient to feel sleepy throughout the day and condition in which sleep periods are excessively long, with prolonged sleep episodes or regularly occurring voluntary or involuntary napping, people who are having hypersomnia can fall asleep at any time.

They may also have other sleep related problems like trouble in thinking clearly, lack of energy. Patients often have difficulty waking from a long sleep, and may feel disoriented. Other symptoms may include anxiety, increased irritation, decreased energy, restlessness, slow thinking, loss of appetite, hallucinations, and memory difficulty.

Treatment includes use of stimulants such as amphetamine, bromocriptine, clonidine, levodopa, monoamine oxidase inhibitors and antidepressants. Patient should not consume alcohol and avoid caffeine. Some medical conditions can also lead to hypersomnia such as multiple sclerosis, depression, encephalitis, epilepsy, or obesity may contribute to the disorder, it is first recognized in adulthood.

Hypersomnia is a relatively rare sleeping disorder, affecting under 1% of the population. It is slightly more common in females than in males, and typically starts in early adulthood. It is very rarely found in children.