Rapid Eye Movement Parasomnias
Sleep Medicine November 1, 2025 DOI: 10.1093/med/9780197550823.003.0020 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key findings | The authors characterize REM parasomnias—nightmares, isolated sleep paralysis, and REM sleep behavior disorder—as striking and sometimes terrifying phenomena that have shaped culture and scientific understanding of sleep and consciousness. They note that RBD has several therapeutic options and that investigators are increasingly seeking disease-modifying therapies to delay or reverse alpha-synuclein neurodegeneration. |
Abstract
Abstract Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep is a fascinating state characterized by vivid dream mentation, quick saccadic eye movements, skeletal muscle paralysis, and autonomic arousal. Abnormal behaviors and experiential phenomena emanating from REM sleep, the REM parasomnias, can be mesmerizing and terrifying. These REM-related experiences include nightmares, isolated sleep paralysis, and the dream enactment of REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD). They have frightened patients over the eons, inspired artists, incited supernatural belief, and been leveraged by scientists to better understand the nature of sleep and consciousness. Fortunately, RBD has several therapeutic options, and a growing body of investigators are seeking disease-modifying therapies to delay or reverse alpha-synuclein neurodegeneration.