Absence of REM and altered NREM sleep in patients with spinocerebellar degeneration and slow saccades

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
The pontine tegmentum contains the neurons responsible for generation of saccadic eye movements and certain phases of sleep. We studied two genetically unrelated patients with spinocerebellar degeneration and slow saccadic eye movements. Multiple all-night sleep studies in both patients disclosed absence of REM and stage 4 sleep with an extremly short stage 3 and long stage 2. Both patients had a sleep stage (X) not previously reported. These are the first awake and ambulatory humans in whom consistent abscence of REM sleep has been demonstrated. Both behaved appropriately during wakefulness and showed no overt psychological abnormalities.