Exploding Head Syndrome Accompanied by Repeating Panic Attacks: A Case Report

Frontiers in Psychiatry

Akiomi Kawae¹  Yoshiyuki Kaneko¹  Yasuhiro Gon²  Masahiro Suzuki³  Kaori Saitoh³  Makoto Uchiyama⁴ 

[1] Department of Psychiatry, Nihon University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan;Division of Respiratory Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Nihon University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan;Sleep Medicine Center, Nihon University Itabashi Hospital, Tokyo, Japan;Tokyoadachi Hospital, Tokyo, Japan;

关键词: exploding head syndrome;    sleep disorder;    parasomnia;    panic attack;    clonazepam;    case report;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fpsyt.2020.613420

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

To the best of our knowledge, we report here for the first time a case of exploding head syndrome (EHS) that caused repeating panic attacks. A 62-year-old woman experienced a sudden sensation of a loud noise just before going to sleep. The frequency of these episodes rapidly increased to multiple times per night, and she soon began to fear sleep, which led to the occurrence of nighttime panic attacks. She was diagnosed with EHS at our sleep clinic, and clonazepam was prescribed accompanied by reassurance about the benign nature of this syndrome. The intensity of the loud noise gradually reduced, and her fear of sleep and panic attacks disappeared at around the same time. In this report, we argue the importance of gaining further knowledge about EHS, including that about complicating psychiatric symptoms and that about its treatment.

【 授权许可】

Unknown