United States: Nightmares could be seen as a warning sign of the development of autoimmune diseases in the brain, as the latest finding revealed.
More about the news
In a recent study conducted by a public health researcher Melanie Sloan from University of Cambridge, it was noted that bad dreams are one of the most universal and first signs that a Lupus flare is on its way.
In an on-line survey carried out among 676 lupus patients – also known as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients – about 30 percent of patients stated that they experienced disrupted dreams one year before other symptoms of the disease manifested themselves.
These results contribute to growing anecdotal suggesting that individual dreams and the respective brain’s immune system share a curious connection, sciencealert.com reported.
What do the experts say?
According to the neurologist and study author Guy Leschziner from Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospitals in London, “We have long been aware that alterations in dreaming may signify changes in physical, neurological and mental health, and can sometimes be early indicators of disease, as sciencealert.com reported.
“However, this is the first evidence that nightmares may also help us monitor such a serious autoimmune condition like lupus, and is an important prompt to patients and clinicians alike that sleep symptoms may tell us about impending relapse,” he added.
More about SLE
SLE is a potentially disabling chronic, systemic disease of unclear etiology and can affect persons of any age; however, it is primarily diagnosed between the ages of 15 and 45 years.
Occasionally or every few years or so, it causes inflammation and pain of the joints, fever in some individuals, chest pains, general body weakness, and hair loss.
However, not all SLE patients who experience a flare undergo neuropsychiatric symptoms at some point. However, for the about 40 percent who do, diagnosis and treatment are complicated because most of the impromptu indicators are hard to observe, especially when they include nightmares or hallucinations, or most patients dread disclosing such symptoms.
The cognitive manifestation of auto-antibodies against the brain often leads to vivid, emotionally charged dreams, but it is not a prevalent issue.
Lately, though, research works indicate that for those who go on to be diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease (which, as stated, is associated with autoimmune problems), others are troubled by these dreams for up to a decade before onset, as sciencealert.com reported.
Nightmare prevalence is also possibly indicative of dementia, which in turn is also associated with immunity. It can also be seen that some multiple sclerosis patients have their dreams turn ugly before a flare-up.
Similarly, it seems that some individuals with lupus can no longer do it.
Besides the online survey, in-depth interviews were undertaken among people diagnosed with systemic autoimmune rheumatic disease (SARD), including lupus; 69 participants completed the interviews.