sleep terror
Parasomnia characterized by sudden arousal from deep sleep with intense fear, autonomic activation, and limited responsiveness.
Full Definition
Sleep terrors, also known as night terrors, are a parasomnia disorder characterized by episodes of sudden arousal from slow-wave sleep accompanied by intense fear, autonomic nervous system activation, and relative unresponsiveness to the environment. Episodes typically occur during the first third of the night and last 1-10 minutes, featuring behaviors such as sitting up abruptly, screaming, rapid breathing, sweating, and dilated pupils. Unlike nightmares, individuals experiencing sleep terrors are difficult to awaken and usually have no memory of the episode upon morning awakening. Sleep terrors are more common in children than adults and may be triggered by factors such as sleep deprivation, fever, stress, or medications. The disorder is classified as a non-REM parasomnia and typically resolves with age.
Usage
Usage note: Can be written as one word 'sleepterror' or hyphenated 'sleep-terror', but two words is most common in medical literature.
In Context
- "The child's sleep terrors occurred 2-3 times weekly during the first few hours of sleep." — Pediatric sleep consultation
- "Sleep terror episodes were captured on video polysomnography emerging from stage 3 NREM sleep." — Sleep study documentation