Narcolepsy Center - Palo Alto, CA
Palo Alto Sleep Specialist Doctors for NarcolepsyType of Physician: Sleep Specialist What is a Sleep Specialist? A subspecialty certification by the Board of Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, or Psychiatry & Neurology; practitioners are trained in the diagnosis and management of clinical conditions that occur during sleep, that disturb sleep, or that are affected by dis Specialty: Sleep Medicine Common Name: Sleep Medicine Sleep Specialist Doctors in Palo Alto * Redwood Pulmonary Medical Associates  Redwood Pulmonary Medical Associates  Robert C Ang MD  Man K Leung MD  UCSF Rheumatology  San Francisco Critical Care Medical Group Inc  Respiratory Medical Group  Vu Tran MD  NorthBay Sleep Medicine Institute  Sutter Neuroscience Medical Group - Sutter Cancer Center  Lydia M Wytrzes MD  Pulmonary Medicine Palo Alto, CaliforniaUpcoming Local Events2012-06-16
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NarcolepsyWhat is narcolepsy?Narcolepsy is a chronic disease of the central nervous system. Excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) is the main symptom and is present in 100% of patients with narcolepsy. Other primary symptoms of narcolepsy include:
Additional symptoms include disturbed nocturnal sleep and automatic behavior (patients carry out certain actions without conscious awareness). All of the symptoms of narcolepsy may be present in various combinations and degrees of severity. Narcolepsy usually begins in teenagers or young adults and affects both sexes equally. The first symptom to appear is excessive daytime sleepiness, which may remain unrecognized for a long time in that it develops gradually over time. The other symptoms can follow excessive daytime sleepiness by months or years.
How common is narcolepsy?The prevalence of narcolepsy is similar to that of Parkinson's disease and multiple sclerosis. In the United States, the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke estimates narcolepsy affects one in every 2,000 people. However, in some countries (for example, Israel), the prevalence of narcolepsy is much lower (one per 500,000) while in other countries (for example, Japan), it is much higher (one per 600). The American Sleep Association estimates that approximately 125,000 to 200,000 Americans suffer from narcolepsy, but only fewer than 50,000 are properly diagnosed. Narcolepsy often remains undiagnosed or misdiagnosed for several years. This may occur because physicians do not consider the diagnosis of narcolepsy frequently enough. They may think of narcolepsy only in people who have the main symptom of excessive daytime sleepiness. Narcolepsy may not be considered in the evaluation o... Recommended Reading Related to NarcolepsyWhat is sleep apnea?Sleep apnea is a disorder characterized by a reduction or pause of breathing (airflow) during sleep. It is common among adults but rare among children. Although a diagnosis of sleep apnea often will be suspected on the basis of a person's medical history, there are several tests that can be used to confirm the diagnosis. The treatment of sleep apnea may be either surgical or nonsurgical. An apnea is a period of time during which breathing stops or is markedly reduced. In simplified terms, an apnea occurs when a person stops breathing for 10 seconds or more. If you stop breathing completely or take less than 25% of a normal breath for a period that lasts 10 seconds or more, this is an apnea. This definition includes complete stoppage of airflow. Other definitions of apnea that may be used include at least a 4% drop in oxygen in the blood, a direct result of the reduction in the transfer of oxygen into the blood when breathing stops. ...Other Related Narcolepsy ArticlesEmergency Contact for Palo Alto
Nearby Palo Alto Hospitals *Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Menlo Park Surgical Hospital Stanford Hospital & Clinics VA Palo Alto Health Care System Kaiser Permanente Redwood City Medical Center Sequoia Hospital El Camino Hospital San Mateo Medical Center Kaiser Permanente Santa Clara Medical Center Fremont Hospital Mills Hospital Washington Hospital  Kaiser Permanente Hayward Medical Center  St Rose Hospital  Mills-Peninsula Health Services  O'Connor Hospital  Santa Clara Valley Medical Center  El Camino Hospital of Los Gatos  Good Samaritan Hospital San Jose  Eden Medical Center  Regional Medical Center of San Jose  Good Samaritan Hospital Mission Oaks  Alameda County Medical Center Fairmont Campus  John George Psychiatric Pavilion  San Leandro Hospital  Kindred Hospital San Francisco Bay Area  Seton Medical Center Coastside  Kaiser Permanente South San Francisco Medical Center  Alameda Hospital  ValleyCare Health System Pleasanton  Seton Medical Center  Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center  Alameda County Medical Center Highland Campus  St Luke's Hospital  Livermore Division of the VA Palo Alto Healthcare System  San Francisco General Hospital  San Ramon Regional Medical Center  Valley Memorial Hospital  Laguna Honda Hospital & Rehabilitation Center  Alta Bates Summit Medical Center Summit Campus  Kaiser Permanente Medical Center at Oakland  California Pacific Medical Center Davies Campus  UCSF Medical Center at Parnassus  Saint Francis Memorial Hospital  Children's Hospital & Research Center Oakland  Chinese Hospital  St Mary's Medical Center  Kaiser Permanente San Francisco Medical Center  UCSF Medical Center at Mount Zion  California Pacific Medical Center Pacific Campus  California Pacific Medical Center East Campus  California Pacific Medical Center California Campus  Alta Bates Summit Medical Center Alta Bates Campus  Alta Bates Summit Medical Center Herrick Campus  San Francisco VA Medical Center  Kaiser Permanente Walnut Creek Medical Center  Dominican Hospital  John Muir Medical Center Walnut Creek Campus  Sutter Maternity & Surgery Center Featured Articles*Provider Directory Terms of Use: The WebMD 'Provider Directory' is provided by WebMD for use by the general public as a quick reference of information about Providers. The Provider Directory is not intended as a tool for verifying the credentials, qualifications, or abilities of any Provider contained therein. Inclusion in the Provider Directory does not imply recommendation or endorsement nor does omission in the Provider Directory imply WebMD disapproval. |
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