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[Nightmares in the bedroom of science: mapping of a neglected sleep disorder].

Péter Simor

Orvosi hetilap March 31, 2013 DOI: 10.1556/oh.2013.29573 (opens in new tab)

Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Review Peer reviewed
Population Adult population with nightmares
Topics Dreaming
Key findings Nightmare disorder should be viewed as a specific sleep disorder requiring targeted treatment, not solely as a psychopathological condition.

Abstract

Nightmares are intense and unpleasant dream experiences that characterize approximately 4 percent of the adult population at least on a weekly basis. Nightmare frequency is often co-morbid with other mental complaints; however, recent results indicate that nightmare disorder is independent from waking mental dysfunctions. Nightmare disorder is intimately related to poor subjective sleep quality, and according to polysomnographic studies nightmare subjects' sleep is characterized by increased sleep fragmentation and hyper-arousal. These findings suggest that instead of the psychopathological perspective nightmare disorder should be viewed as a specific sleep disorder that requires targeted treatment. Nevertheless, in order to choose the adequate treatment procedure clinicians should examine the co-morbid mental disorders as well taking into consideration the severity of nightmare distress, the latter supposed to be the mediator between nightmare frequency and waking mental dysfunctions.

Comparable studies

Other narrative reviews on dreaming, most cited first.

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