Question 1

i was just diagnosed with narcolepsy (with flying colors), which was always mistaken for depression. could my inability in controlling my tears be pba?

Accepted Answer

Other illnesses?: Pseudobulbar affect (pba) is a medical condition with sudden, uncontrollable episodes of crying or laughing -- sometimes called emotional incontinence. It can be triggered by stroke, traumatic brain injury, multiple sclerosis, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (lou gehrig’s disease), parkinson’s disease and dementias including alzheimer's. I found no literature linking narcolepsy with pba.

Question 2

is narcolepsy inherited?

Accepted Answer

Yes: Up to 10% of narcolepsy patients have family members with the illness.  Twins have an even higher chance of both having the illness.

Question 3

what are the pros & cons of narcolepsy?

Accepted Answer

Narcolepsy: I know of no positives for narcolepsy. It can be embarrassing and dangerous.

Question 4

permanent cure for narcolepsy?

Accepted Answer

Not yet: Narcolepsy is controllable with many current medications, but a permanent cure remains in the future.  Sleep medicine focus is a recent development in medicine, and with more understanding, you will see break-throughs.  So, currently, we have provigil, nuvigil, xyrem, even various amphetamines, and a few other agents, to at least prevent sleep attacks.

Question 5

can jet lag be as severe as narcolepsy?

Accepted Answer

Perhaps: For some people, perhaps the severity can be the same, at least for a short time.  A difference between these could be that jet lag recovers, while narcolepsy persists.

You may find some questions to your sleep medicine questions answered here:

http://healthysleep.med.harvard.edu/narcolepsy/glossary

Question 6

are narcolepsy & gulf war syndrome related?

Accepted Answer

Hard to answer: I can't say no but also can't say yes.  There are a lot of things that are unknown about the cause of each.  It is clear that narcolepsy is relatively uncommon but that there are patients that have been diagnosed with gws and also have narcolepsy.  More studying needs to be done on each condition separately and those that have both.

Question 7

can i get narcolepsy or you're born with it?

Accepted Answer

Not born with it: Narcolepsy is a disorder of hypersomnolence, usually presenting in late-teenage to late-20's.  Many patients with narcolepsy may have a "hypocretin" deficiency.  This is purely academic, however, and no one checks hypocretin (requires a spinal tap) regularly.  If you have narcolepsy, the test to diagnose it would be a psg with following day mslt.  See a sleep specialist.

Question 8

what are the effects of provigil on narcolepsy?

Accepted Answer

Wakefulness: Modafinil is classified as a somnolytic, and promotes alertness and wakefulness through selective activation of wake and sleep centers in the central nervous system.  The fda has approved its use in nacrolepsy, adjunctive treatment of excessive daytime sleepiness associated with obstructive sleep apnea, and shift-work sleep disorder. Off-label, it's used for adhd and adjectively for depression.

Question 9

i have dizziness -microsleep-ing, possible narcolepsy?

Accepted Answer

Sleep study: The first step after completing a sleep questioner and sleep diary followed by  a sleep study ( polysomnography ) if this does not tell you what is going on often a MSLT test is done to exclude narcolepsy.

Question 10

is narcolepsy a genetically inherited medical problem?

Accepted Answer

Sometimes: It may be genetic sometimes. I have a couple families in my practice.

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Doctor answers about:

Narcolepsy pba

A member asked:

I was just diagnosed with narcolepsy (with flying colors), which was always mistaken for depression. could my inability in controlling my tears be pba?

A member asked:

Is narcolepsy inherited?

A member asked:

What are the pros & cons of narcolepsy?

A member asked:

Permanent cure for narcolepsy?

A member asked:

Can jet lag be as severe as narcolepsy?

A member asked:

Are narcolepsy & gulf war syndrome related?

A member asked:

Can i get narcolepsy or you're born with it?

A member asked:

What are the effects of provigil on narcolepsy?

A member asked:

I have dizziness -microsleep-ing, possible narcolepsy?

A member asked:

Is narcolepsy a genetically inherited medical problem?

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