Night Terrors and Nocturnal Seizures in Children

Most Montrealers complain they do not get enough sleep. Yet, sleep affects are physical and mental health. Not having enough sleep affects our mood, our stamina, our home-life and career, and our social relationships.

Sleep is an important human function which is essential for good physical health and good mental health. Even though sleep is so important many Montrealers take sleeping for granted. They either sleep too much or more often than not, sleep less than is recommended for good health. Montrealers will catnap rather than sleep, burn the midnight oil studying, play on the computer, or just insist that they are too busy too sleep.

Conditions that affect sleep, our health, and mental health include such topics as sleepwalking. For help in the Montreal area for sleep disorders you can in Montreal click here:

Mount Sinai Hospital Sleep Center

Montreal Sleep Clinic

Night Terrors in Children

Night terrors usually commence about 30 minutes to an hour-and-a-half into the sleep process. Just like sleepwalking, the episodes occur during stages three and four of the sleep cycle. However, night terrors are often sudden and appear very extreme and violence, hence the name terrors.

The night terrors episodes start in the toddler stage and will continue to the age of four or five.

Physiological symptoms

The autonomic nervous system surges during night terrors. The heart and respiratory rates are accelerated, the child will sweat, and his or her pupils will dilate.

Causes for night terrors in children

Certain medications such as antihistamines for allergies, cold and flu medication, stimulants and sedatives may trigger night terrors.

Stress and sleep deprivation can also trigger night terrors. Night terrors follow a different pattern than sleepwalking; they might occur for several weeks, stop altogether, and then start up again.

Nocturnal seizures

Nocturnal seizures are different from the other sleep disorders we have reviewed in this article. For one thing seizures are short-lived. They may last only a few minutes but they are often confused for confusional-arousals, sleepwalking, or night terrors. Nocturnal seizures evoke stereotypical, repeated and frequent behaviors. These nocturnal seizures happen in clusters throughout the latter part of the night. The seizure symptoms include: headaches, grogginess, incontinence (urine) and stool (diarrhea).

A video EEG is used to diagnose nocturnal seizures.

Sources:

http://www.drhull.com/EncyMaster/C/confusional_arousals.html

http://www.medicinenet.com/sleepwalking/page4.htm