Journal
ANNALS OF NEUROLOGY
Volume 66, Issue 4, Pages 555-559Publisher
WILEY
DOI: 10.1002/ana.21836
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Funding
- Foerderungskredit of the University of Zurich, Switzerland
- Schweizerischer Versicherungsverband (SW), Switzerland
- National Institutes of Health [MH062589]
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Chronic, daytime sleepiness is a major, disabling symptom for many patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI), but thus far, its etiology is not Well understood. Extensive loss of the hypothalamic neurons that produce the wake-promoting neuropeptide hypocretin (orexin) causes the severe sleepiness of narcolepsy, and partial loss of these cells may contribute to the sleepiness of Parkinson disease and other disorders. We have found that the number of hypocretin neurons is significantly reduced in patients with severe TBI. This observation highlights the often overlooked hypothalamic injury in TBI and provides new insights into the causes of chronic sleepiness in patients with TBI.
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