What is night terrors?

4 May 2021

It is a parasomnia (undesirable episodes during sleep), which is characterized by intense fears, guttural sounds, tremors, and screams when the patient is still asleep.

It is common for night terrors to appear along with sleepwalking, lasting from a few seconds to a few minutes, affecting just under half of children, although they can also affect adults, only in a much smaller percentage.

Night terrors generally disappear as children approach adolescence, but if they persist, cause serious sleep disorders, or endanger their safety, they will need to be treated promptly.

As with sleepwalking, and being a parasomnia, night terrors occur during the deepest sleep phase, N3.

Some of the potential risks of developing night terrors are:

Restless legs syndrome.
Certain drugs.
Depression.
Anxiety.
Alcohol and drug intake.
Severe sleep delay.
Extreme fatigue.
Stress.
Impact on sleep habits.
High fever.
Obstructive sleep apnea.

Signs and symptoms Night terrors

Excessive sweating.
Heavy breathing.
Accelerated heartbeat.
Intense fear.
Violent movements of arms and legs.
Difficulty waking up.
Forgetting about the episode the next day.
Aggressiveness.
Screams of terror.
Sitting in bed with a fearful face.
Eyes fully open.
Fixed gaze and dilated pupils.

Diagnosis and treatment Night terrors

Once the sleep disorders specialist analyzes your symptoms and clinical history, they will perform a physical examination, ask your family member a series of questions about the episodes you experienced while you were sleeping, and perform a polysomnography to measure and observe your sleep patterns during its different phases.

The treatment will be determined after establishing the diagnosis and depending on the intensity of the symptoms, as well as whether the night terrors are due to other sleep disorders or other conditions, and it may include drugs, cognitive behavioral therapy, hypnosis, biofeedback, and relaxation.

At the Neurology Center, a select group of highly trained and certified doctors in various neurological specialties is ready to assist you with the quality and warmth that characterizes us.

Nervous system specialties

Neurology
Neurosurgery
Spine surgery
Pediatric neurosurgery
Neurophysiology
Neuro-rehabilitation
Neuropathology
Interventional neuroradiology
Neuropsychology
Neuro-oncology
Neurotology
Epilepsy
Neuro-ophthalmology
Neuroimaging

Related centers and departments Night terrors

Neurology Center
High Specialty Surgery Center
Radiology and Molecular Imaging
Clinical Laboratory

Fuentes:

cun.es
topdoctors.es
middlesexhealth.org
mayocilinic.org
medlineplus.gov
msdmanuals.com
medigraphic.com
Ávila PM, Iglesias TJS, Delgado PGY. Alteraciones biopsicosociales más frecuentes en ancianos que ingresan en la Sala de Geriatría. Acta Med Cent. 2021;15(1):81-90.
Rojas FOA, Palomino MLG, Romero VR, et al. Asociación entre el uso de medios tecnológicos y algunas alteraciones del sueño. CuidArte. 2015;4(8):46-54.

How can we help you?

The dissemination of the content of this material is for informational purposes only and does not replace, under any circumstance or condition, a consultation with a specialist doctor, for which the ABC Medical Center is not responsible for the different use that may be given to it. If you require more information related to the subject, we suggest you contact the specialist doctor you trust directly.

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Comparison of COVID-19 vaccines

Pfizer-
BioNTech

Pfizer-BioNTech

What is its effectiveness and what does it refer to?

Vaccine type: mRNA
Effectiveness: 95% after the second dose in the prevention of symptomatic COVID-19.

No Does not contain egg, latex, or preservatives.

How many doses are needed?
Two doses are needed, at least 21 days apart (or up to six weeks apart, if necessary).

Who should or shouldn’t get the vaccine?
People who should receive the vaccine are those over 16 years old.
People who should not receive the vaccine are those who have a history of anaphylactic shock (severe allergy) or who are allergic to any component of this vaccine such as polyethylene glycol (PEG) or polysorbate.

What are the possible side effects of the vaccine?
Pain where the injection was given, fatigue, headache, muscle pain, chills, joint pain, fever, nausea, malaise, and swollen lymph nodes.

How long will it take for me to be protected and what does it protect me from?
After 14 days of having the complete scheme (after the administration of the 2nd dose), the protection period is still under study. It protects us from serious COVID-19 or requiring hospitalization.

Moderna

What is its effectiveness and what does it refer to?

Vaccine type: mRNA
Effectiveness: 94.5% after the second dose in the prevention of symptomatic COVID-19.

Does not contain egg, latex, or preservatives.

How many doses are needed?
Two doses are needed, at least 28 days apart (or up to six weeks apart, if necessary).

Who should or shouldn’t get the vaccine?
People who should receive the vaccine are those over 18 years old.
People who should not receive the vaccine are those who have a history of anaphylactic shock (severe allergy) or who are allergic to any component of this vaccine.

What are the possible side effects of the vaccine?
Pain where the injection was given, fatigue, headache, muscle pain, chills, joint pain, fever, nausea, and swollen lymph nodes in the arm in which you received the injection.

Janssen/
Johnson
& Johnson

Janssen/ Johnson & Johnson

What is its effectiveness and what does it refer to?

Vector-based vaccine.
Effectiveness: 72.0% in the prevention of symptomatic COVID-19.
85% in the prevention of severe COVID-19.

Does not contain egg, latex, or preservatives./strong>

How many doses are needed?
Only one dose in needed.

What are the possible side effects of the vaccine?
Pain where the injection was given, headache, fatigue, muscle pain, chills, fever, and nausea.

How long will it take for me to be protected and what does it protect me from?
After 28 days of having the complete scheme (the last dose applied), the protection period is still under study. It protects us from 85% serious COVID-19 or requiring hospitalization.

AstraZeneca
and
Oxford
University

AstraZeneca and Oxford University

What is its effectiveness and what does it refer to?

Adenovirus vector-based vaccine.
Effectiveness: 82% after the second dose in the prevention of symptomatic COVID-19.

How many doses are needed?
Two doses are needed, at least 56 days apart (or up to 84 days apart, if necessary).

What are the possible side effects of the vaccine?
Pain where the injection was given, fatigue, headache, myalgia, arthralgia, and fever, which were mild to moderate in intensity and disappeared within 48 hours of vaccination.

Sputnik V

What is its effectiveness and what does it refer to?

Adenovirus vector-based vaccine.
Effectiveness: 92% after the second dose in the prevention of symptomatic COVID-19.

How many doses are needed?
Two doses are needed, at least 21 days apart (or up to six weeks apart, if necessary).

What is night terrors?

Signs and symptoms Night terrors

Diagnosis and treatment Night terrors

Related centers and departments Night terrors

Fuentes:

Index

Specialist in Night terrors