Sleep disorders in patients with multiple sclerosis

Summary

Patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) often have unrecognized sleep disorders at higher frequency than the general population. Sleep disorders such as sleep disordered breathing, insomnia, REM sleep behavior disorder, narcolepsy and restless legs syndrome have all been reported in the MS population. Notably, the most common symptom of MS is “fatigue,” which itself has been correlated with sleep disturbances. Sleep disorders may impact the quality of life of the MS patient population. This paper reviews the association of sleep disorders with MS, and discusses the association of sleep disruption with MS fatigue.

Keywords: Insomnia, Multiple sclerosis, Sleep, Restless legs syndrome, Fatigue, Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome, Excessive daytime sleepiness

a Co-Director of Sleep Medicine, Department of Neurology, UC Davis School of Medicine, 4860 Y Street, Suite 0100, Sacramento, CA 95817, USA

b Medical Director of Multiple Sclerosis Clinic, Centre Hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal, 1560 Sherbrooke Street E, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H2L 4M1

c Centre Hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal, 1560 Sherbrooke Street E, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H2L 4M1

d Director of Sleep Medicine, Department of Neurology, Boston University, 720 Harrison Avenue, Suite 707, Boston, MA 02118, USA

Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 916 734 3588, +1 916 703 5078.

PII: S1087-0792(09)00070-7

doi:10.1016/j.smrv.2009.07.005

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