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Query: UMLS:C0004352 (autism)
 32,579 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

We performed nocturnal polysomnography on 11 children with autism who had symptoms of disrupted sleep and nocturnal awakenings. We identified rapid eye movement (REM) sleep behavior disorder in 5 of these 11 patients. Since REM sleep behavior disorder typically affects elderly males with neurodegenerative diseases, the identification of this phenomenon in autistic children could have profound implications for our understanding of the neurochemical and neurophysiologic bases of autism. Further, accurate diagnosis of REM sleep behavior disorder would enable specific treatment with clonazepam and help the family and the child consolidate sleep and improve daytime performance.
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PMID:Rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder in children with autism. 1202 31

Sleep is clearly not only a whole-brain or global phenomenon, but can also be a local phenomenon. This accounts for the fact that the primary states of being (wakefulness, NREM sleep, and REM sleep) are not necessarily mutually exclusive, and components of these states may appear in various combinations, with fascinating clinical consequences. Examples include: sleep inertia, narcolepsy, sleep paralysis, lucid dreaming, REM sleep behavior disorder, sleepwalking, sleep terrors, out-of-body experiences, and reports of alien abduction. The incomplete declaration of state likewise has implications for consciousness - which also has fluid boundaries. Fluctuations in the degree of consciousness are likely explained by abnormalities of a "spatial and temporal binding rhythm" which normally results in a unified conscious experience. Dysfunctional binding may play a role in anesthetic states, autism, schizophrenia, and neurodegenerative disorders. Further study of the broad spectrum of dissociated states of sleep and wakefulness that are closely linked with states of consciousness and unconsciousness by basic neuroscientists, clinicians, and members of the legal profession will provide scientific, clinical and therapeutic insights, with forensic implications.
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PMID:State dissociation, human behavior, and consciousness. 2190 25