Early Signs of Parkinson's Disease May Be Sleep Disturbances

Subtle signs of Parkinson's disease can be missed in the early stages before the more obvious signs of rigidity, tremor and the slow, shuffling gait develop. Now, a new study shows that one of the first signs of Parkinson's can be changes in sleep habits, especially changes during the REM stage of sleep when rapid eye movements occur. These changes may occur years before a Parkinson's disease sufferer develops other symptoms.

Early Signs of Parkinson's Disease and Sleep

Normally during sleep, a person enters a stage of sleep called REM sleep, a sleep phase marked by rapid eye movements. This is the period when most dreaming occurs. During this time, signals are sent to the muscles to keep them at rest, as a way to keep a person from injuring themselves while they're actively dreaming.

According to Dr. Poul Jennum, a clinical neurophysiology professor at the University of Copenhagen, one of the earliest signs of Parkinson's disease is a failure of this "muscle control" system to work during REM sleep. People in the early stages of Parkinson's disease may have unexpected movements and act out their dreams during REM sleep. They may jump out of bed, kick, punch, jerk or moving ballistically during REM sleep, at a time when movements are usually suppressed. This sign may appear eight or more years before other Parkinson's symptoms develop - and it may be the first sign a patient has.

What Does This Mean?

There's another sleep disorder called rapid eye movement behavioral disorder or RBD where a person moves ballistically during REM sleep. So pronounced are their movements during REM sleep that they may injure themselves or others. The first stages of Parkinson's disease can present in a similar manner - as a first sign of the disease.

Parkinson Early Signs: The Bottom Line?

Being aware of these early signs of Parkinson's disease could make it easier to diagnosis the disease at an earlier stage - sometimes years before other signs and symptoms develop. Anyone who experiences change in sleep patterns or sees them in a loved one, especially if they're moving ballistically or jerking during sleep should get medical attention. Don't ignore these early signs of Parkinson's disease.

References:

Eureakalert.org. "Early Indications of Parkinson's Disease Revealed in Dream Sleep"

Merck Manual. Eighteenth edition. 2006.