Dreams and nightmares in healthy adults and in patients with sleep and neurological disorders.
Francesca Siclari, Katja Valli, Isabelle Arnulf
Lancet Neurology October 1, 2020 DOI: 10.1016/s1474-4422(20)30275-1 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Dreaming |
| Key findings | Neurological conditions such as lucid dreams and parasomnias show that dreaming is reflected in physiological signals and brain activity, and that the dream body can differ from the real body. |
Abstract
Dreams are experiences that occur during sleep, while we are disconnected from the environment. Thanks to recent progress in neuroimaging techniques, it is now becoming possible to relate dream features to specific patterns of brain activity. Some conditions occurring in patients with neurological disorders, such as lucid dreams and parasomnias, not only have diagnostic value, but also offer a window into the dream process. They show that dreaming is reflected in physiological signals, behaviours, and brain activity patterns, and that the body can enact dream content. Yet, the dream body can also be distinct from the real body; in their dreams, patients with congenital paraplegia can walk, those with sleep apnoea rarely suffocate, and phantom limb pain can disappear. These conditions provide valuable models for future studies investigating the mechanisms that underlie oneiric experiences.
Comparable studies
Other narrative reviews on dreaming, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The cognitive neuroscience of lucid dreaming | 2019 | Review | |
| Sleep and dreaming are for important matters | 2013 | Review | |
| Nightmare Disorder and Isolated Sleep Paralysis | 2020 | Review | |
| My Dream, My Rules: Can Lucid Dreaming Treat Nightmares? | 2019 | Review | |
| Dream Recall: State or Trait Variable? Part I: Model, Theories, Methodology and Trait Factors | 1996 | Review |
Citations in the library
Cited by 36
- What is sleep exactly? Global and local modulations of sleep oscillations all around the clock. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews December 1, 2023
- Shared EEG correlates between non-REM parasomnia experiences and dreams. Nature Communications May 9, 2024
- The Language of Dreams: Application of Linguistics-Based Approaches for the Automated Analysis of Dream Experiences Clocks & Sleep September 19, 2021
- The relationships between insomnia, nightmares, and dreams: A systematic review Sleep Medicine Reviews April 16, 2024
- DREAM: A Dream EEG and Mentation database May 16, 2023
and 31 more in the library
Cites 47
- Breakdown of Cortical Effective Connectivity During Sleep Science September 29, 2005
- Consciousness as Integrated Information: a Provisional Manifesto Biological Bulletin December 1, 2008
- Lucid Dreaming: a State of Consciousness with Features of Both Waking and Non-Lucid Dreaming Sleep September 1, 2009
- Neural Correlates of Dream Lucidity Obtained from Contrasting Lucid versus Non-Lucid REM Sleep: A Combined EEG/fMRI Case Study Sleep June 29, 2012
- Assessing sleep consciousness within subjects using a serial awakening paradigm Frontiers in Psychology 2013
and 42 more in the library