Sleep disorders in multiple sclerosis

Tiffany J. Braley, Eilis Ann Boudreau

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

77 Scopus citations

Abstract

Recent studies suggest that individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS) are at increased risk for sleep disturbances and that sleep disturbances contribute to fatigue and other chronic symptoms in MS. Although fatigue occurs commonly in people with MS, this symptom is often attributed to MSspecific pathology. Consequently, sleep disorders are often unrecognized and untreated in this population. Timely diagnosis and treatment of sleep problems in MS offer a new opportunity to ameliorate some of the daytime fatigue experienced by patients with MS. To increase this opportunity, the practitioner should be comfortable performing basic screening for common sleep complaints among patients with MS. The objectives of this review are to summarize the latest relevant data on sleep disorders in MS and offer a helpful approach to the identification and workup of the most common sleep problems in this population. Unexplored research avenues and opportunities to address important questions at the interface of sleep and MS are also discussed.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number50
JournalCurrent neurology and neuroscience reports
Volume16
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - May 2016

Keywords

  • Fatigue
  • Insomnia
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Obstructive sleep apnea
  • Restless leg syndrome

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Neuroscience
  • Clinical Neurology

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