Question

Narcolepsy is a condition in which a person has excessive sleepiness during daytime as they are unable to regulate their sleep cycle. It’s a neurological disorder and can be traced with the help of an EEG. What kind of EEG can be expected in this kind of disorder?

(a) Alpha waves with short bursts of Beta waves

(b) Alpha Waves with short burst of Gamma waves

(c) Alpha Waves with short bursts of sleep spindles

(d) Continuous alpha waves

This question was addressed to me in semester exam.

Asked question is from Electroencephalography topic in portion Diagnostic Investigation in Neurology and Cardiology of Clinical Science

Answer 1

Right option is (c) Alpha Waves with short bursts of sleep spindles

To explain I would say: The brain normally gives alpha waves while deep sleep produces sleep spindles. When a person is suffering from narcolepsy they will have a deep burst of sleep which causes the sleep spindles to occur. Thus the presence of sleep spindles in the period of wakefulness can indicate narcolepsy.