Becoming a Receptionist

Narcolepsy

                                                            By

                                                      Tiny James

                                                     Mrs. Navaroli

                                                    English Comp II

                                                      June 30, 2012

Narcolepsy

        Narcolepsy is a permanent sleep disorder that gets worse with age.  It is estimated that about 40,000 to 135,000 people in the U.S. have narcolepsy.  Most people have narcolepsy are often times misdiagnosed because the symptoms, especially if noticed at the beginning.  This disorder happens to be most dangerous sleeping disorder.  The cause of narcolepsy is poorly understood. It is possibly caused by reduced amounts of a protein called hypocretin, which is made in the brain and causes the brain to produce less of this protein. (NCBI)  There is no cure for narcolepsy at this time.

        Researchers at Stanford University and the University of California-Los Angeles have identified the cause of the debilitating sleep disorder called narcolepsy, ending a 120-year medical mystery (Krieger 1).  People with the rare disease who suffer sudden sometimes dangerous “sleep attacks,” are missing the brain cells that produce a critical protein thought to play a role in the normal sleep-wakefulness cycle, said Dr. Emmanuel Mignot, director to the Stanford Center for narcolepsy.  While it is unknown what role this “sleep molecule” plays in normal brains, “It could be involved in determining why healthy people need sleep,” said Mignot.  “But we haven’t demonstrated this.  We have to do the work.

        The discovery offers hope to the estimated 125,000 Americans with the disease, because it suggests route of treatment.  The next goal, said scientists, is to create a drug that can reach the brain and replace the missing protein.  In the more distant future, perhaps cell transplants will restore normal function.

        Narcolepsy is an incurable, debilitating neurological disease characterized by sleep attacks, occasional loss of muscle tone and hallucinations.  First described 120 years ago, it affects people in midlife, in their 20’s through 40’s.  The reason people begin to suffer from narcolepsy remains unknown.  There is no evidence that it runs in families, and it is not been linked to any genetic mutation.  People with narcolepsy struggle to stay awake, napping often during the day and in some instances falling asleep at dangerously inappropriate times.  They descend into dreamlike states very quickly, even dreaming while half-awake.  Because of these symptoms, they may lose their jobs, fail at school or have trouble socializing.  All the symptoms in the above statement explain my nephew’s problem, and his biggest problem is falling asleep in the classroom.  The school has been a big help to him because they let him take naps in between classes with the request from the doctor.

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