title: Night terrors in an adult precipitated by sleep apnea.
abstract: Parasomnias are generally described as disorders of arousal that arise out of stage 3 and 4 nonrapid eye movement (NREM) sleep without identifiable cause. We present a case of a 35-year-old man who during nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nCPAP) treatment for severe obstructive sleep apnea experienced an intense night terror triggered by a residual obstructive apnea during rebound deep sleep. The role of rebound deep sleep was thought to be essential in creating a state of sleep with a high arousal threshold hypothesized to be important for the occurrence of parasomnias. This case supports the clinical wisdom that identifiable sources of arousal can trigger parasomnias.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Lankenau Hospital and Medical Research Center, Wynnewood, Pennsylvania 19096-3498, USA.
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Pressman
authors.forename: T J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Meyer
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kendrick-Mohamed
authors.forename: W G
authors.initials: WG
authors.lastname: Figueroa
authors.forename: L W
authors.initials: LW
authors.lastname: Greenspon
authors.forename: D D
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Peterson
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017286:Polysomnography; D011175:Positive-Pressure Respiration; D012891:Sleep Apnea Syndromes / Q000150:complications* / Q000628:therapy; D012893:Sleep Wake Disorders / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis; D012895:Sleep, REM