Non-24-hour sleep-wake syndrome following a car accident.

Boivin, D B; James, F O; Santo, J B; Caliyurt, O; Chalk, C · Neurology · 2003

case_report · Level V

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Abstract

The authors report the case of a 39-year-old sighted woman who displayed non-24-hour sleep-wake cycles following a car accident. The phase relationship between endogenous circadian markers such as plasma melatonin and 6-sulfatoxymelatonin rhythms and self-selected sleep times was abnormal. A laboratory investigation indicated that she was sensitive to bright light as a circadian synchronizer. MRI and brain CT scans were normal, but microscopic brain damage in the vicinity of the suprachiasmatic nucleus or its output pathways is plausible.

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