Official websites use. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Few studies have analyzed the prevalence of isolated rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder RBD giving different estimates. Aim of the study was to estimate the prevalence of isolated RBD in the city of Catania.
A 3-stage design was adopted. Positive participants were interviewed by phone and, if suspected of RBD, were invited for clinical examination by a movement disorders specialist and a sleep specialist Stage II. A total of 1, participants were screened. Of these, One hundred forty-three of them were further screened by phone, of whom 75 were suspected RBD. Thirty-six patients were diagnosed as pRBD, giving a prevalence of 2. Twelve pRBD agreed to a video polysomnography and, of these, 4 were diagnosed as definite RBD, giving a prevalence of 0.
Prevalence adjusted by nonparticipants was 3. J Clin Sleep Med. Keywords: REM sleep behavior disorder, epidemiology, population-based study, polysomnography. In Italy, prevalence of isolated RBD has been studied using only the clinical confirmation.
Study Impact: This is the first RBD prevalence study conducted in Italy that employed video polysomnography using a population-based 3-stage design allowing to calculate estimates for both probable and definite RBD.
This study also discusses the reasons behind the differences in prevalence rates across different studies and the challenges in epidemiological research on RBD. Rapid eye movement REM sleep behavior disorder RBD is a condition characterized by the presence of abnormal behaviors in the sleep phase, such as sudden movements and vocalizations caused by a dream enactment behavior. Isolated RBD could be considered as an alpha-synucleinopathy in its earliest stages, conferring a high risk to convert to either Parkinson disease PD , dementia with Lewy bodies, or multiple system atrophy.
