EPIDREAM 1 : Study of Dreaming in Epilepsy
Condition: Epilepsy
MeSH terms: Epilepsy
Study type: Observational

Summary: 
      Dreaming is a sleep-associated cognitive process whose neural substrates and functions remain
      poorly understood. In healthy subjects, the frequency of dream recall is influenced by
      several factors such as age, gender, interest in dreams and sleep quality. The content of
      dreams mainly depends on waking life experiences, especially when they are recent and have a
      strong emotional content. The function of dreams remains debated but it is widely accepted
      that dreams play a role in emotional regulation.

      Modifications in dreams are observed in several neurological diseases and sleep disorders,
      due to the modifications of sleep related to these diseases, as well as to associated
      disturbances in cognitive functioning and to the impact on such diseases on waking life.
      Epilepsy is a neurological condition characterized by a predisposition to seizures resulting
      from excessive and synchronized abnormal brain activity; it is associated with numerous
      co-morbidities including sleep and cognitive disorders, which are present in nearly one in
      two patients. However, the influence of epilepsy on sleep-related cognitive processes is
      poorly understood. It is suspected that nocturnal epileptic activity disturbs sleep-related
      memory consolidation processes, but the consequences of epilepsy on dreams have been little
      investigated.

      The study of the determinants (epilepsy syndrome, location of the epileptic focus, presence
      of sleep-related seizures, certain anti-epileptic treatments, alteration of the quality of
      sleep) of dream characteristics in this context could lead to a better understanding of the
      dreams physiology, the interactions between epilepsy and sleep, as well as the cognitive and
      emotional functioning related to sleep in epilepsy. It could also determine whether dream
      characteristics can provide information on the epilepsy syndrome and on the presence of
      nocturnal seizures, and thus constitute a diagnostic tool.

      In this cross-sectional observational study, we aim to identify determinants of dream recall
      in relation to epilepsy by administering a simple and brief questionnaire on sleep and
      dreams, to all consecutive patients seen in epileptology consultation during 12 months. Our
      objectives are

        1. To determine whether the presence of sleep-related seizures influences the frequency of
           dream recall in patients with epilepsy

        2. To describe the characteristics of dreams in epilepsy, the influence of epilepsy on
           dreams and to characterize the determinants of dream recall frequency in patients with
           epilepsy We hypothesize that the presence of seizures during sleep will be associated
           with poorer sleep quality, increased frequency of dream recall, and that we will observe
           the inclusion of epilepsy symptoms in dream content, particularly in subjects who are
           aware of their nocturnal seizures and are awakened by them.
    


Intervention name(s): EPIDREAM Questionnaire
Intervention type(s): Other
Intervention description(s): EPIDREAM Questionnaire (questionnaire about dreams and epileptic seizures)
Observational model: Cohort
Time perspective: Prospective
Sampling method: Non-Probability Sample
Study population: 
        200 consecutives out-patients with epilepsy seen at the consultation of the Epilepsy and
        Functional Neurology Department, Lyon Neurological Hospital.
      
Keywords: Epilepsy; Dreams; Seizures