Sleep walking Flashcards
What is sleep walking?
Engaging in activities normally associated with wakefulness while asleep.
when does sleep walking occur?
Stages 3/4 during nREM
Explain the 6yr old boy who slept walked?
While he slept he would rehearse actions that he did earlier that day, e.g. was a sun in the school play, would act this out in his sleep.
Why is sleep walking most likely to occur in children?
children spend more time in SWS. It has been suggested that the system that normally inhibits movement during SWS is not fully developed in children and so hence why they sleep walk. In the rare adult that sleep walks, this may be the case with them- underdeveloped system.
Other factors that contribute to sleep walking
SWS increased after alcohol consumption, sleep deprivation and fever, meaning it can cause sleep walking. The fact that risk factors trigger sleep walking in only some people suggests there is an inherited vulnerability for sleep walking.
explain the study that suggests sleep deprivation increases chance of sleep walking.
When observing sleep walkers, incidence rates were 50%, when those same people were deprived of sleep for 25hrs, sleep walking rose to 90%.
Describe the incomplete arousal explanation
During sleep walking, people show delta waves and beta waves, consistent with SWS state and awake state. Sleep walking may occur when someone is awoken but the arousal of the brain is incomplete.
Evaluation
Discuss the genetic basis for sleep walking
The prevalence for sleep walking in first-degree relatives is at least 10x higher.
There is a 50% concordance in identical twins and 15% in non-identical twins.
Evaluation
Discuss the connection between sleep walking and HLA
When comparing sleep walkers with non-sleepwalkers, HLA frequency was higher in those who sleep walk. However, not all sleep walkers had this molecule and even people who don’t sleep walk had this molecule. Meaning we do not know the exact relationships between the 2.
Evaluation
what is the sample problem with these studies?
Not representative.
Many sleepwalkers do not seek help; either because they are unaware of the problem or find it doesn’t cause them many problems.
Those who seek help see it as a problem e.g. harming themselves.
What are the 3 evaluation points?
Genetic basis
Sampling problem
HLA in those who sleep walk
