Severe Sleep Deprivation Causes Hallucinations and a Gradual Progression Toward Psychosis With Increasing Time Awake.

ABSTRACT: Background: Going without sleep for long periods of time can produce a range of experiences, including perceptual distortions and hallucinations. Many questions, however, remain unanswered regarding the types of symptoms which are most reliably elicited, the time of symptom onset, and whether symptoms worsen over time toward psychotic decompensation. Since sleep deprivation exceeding 48 h is considered unethical today, an examination of historical studies with extreme sleep-loss duration is needed to obtain information about what happens during prolonged sleep loss. Methods: A systematic-review approach was used to identify experimental and observational studies of sleep deprivation in healthy people which describe the effects of prolonged sleep loss on psychopathological sym

SUBMITTER: Waters F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6048360 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature