Sleep deprivation. Physiological effects[edit] Main health effects of sleep deprivation.
Minor dark circles, in addition to a hint of eye bags, a combination suggestive of minor sleep deprivation. Generally, sleep deprivation may result in:[5][6] Diabetes[edit] In 2005, a study of over 1400 participants showed that participants who habitually slept few hours were more likely to have associations with type 2 diabetes.[17] However, because this study was merely correlational, the direction of cause and effect between little sleep and diabetes is uncertain. Effects on the brain[edit] The temporal lobe, which is a brain region involved in language processing, was activated during verbal learning in rested subjects but not in sleep-deprived subjects.
A 2001 study at the Chicago Medical Institute suggested that sleep deprivation may be linked to serious diseases, such as heart disease and mental illness including psychosis and bipolar disorder. Effects on growth[edit] Effects on the healing process[edit] Fatal familial insomnia. Fatal familial insomnia (FFI) is an extremely rare autosomal dominant inherited prion disease of the brain.
It is almost always caused by a mutation to the protein PrPC, but can also develop spontaneously in patients with a non-inherited mutation variant called sporadic fatal insomnia (sFI). FFI has no known cure and involves progressively worsening insomnia, which leads to hallucinations, delirium, and confusional states like that of dementia.[1] The average survival span for patients diagnosed with FFI after the onset of symptoms is 18 months.[1] The mutated protein, called PrPSc, has been found in just 40 families worldwide, affecting about 100 people; if only one parent has the gene, the offspring have a 50% risk of inheriting it and developing the disease.
With onset usually around middle age, it is essential that a potential patient be tested if they wish to avoid passing FFI on to their children. The first recorded case was an Italian man, who died in Venice in 1765.[2] Polycoria. Polycoria associated with a genetic disorder Polycoria is extremely rare, and other conditions are frequently mistaken for it.[2] See also[edit]
Fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva. Fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva (FOP), sometimes referred to as Stone Man Syndrome, is an extremely rare disease of the connective tissue.
A mutation of the body's repair mechanism causes fibrous tissue (including muscle, tendon, and ligament) to be ossified spontaneously or when damaged. In many cases, injuries can cause joints to become permanently frozen in place. Surgical removal of the extra bone growths has been shown to cause the body to "repair" the affected area with more bone.[1] Causes[edit] FOP is caused by an autosomal dominant allele on chromosome 2q23-24.[2] The allele has variable expressivity, but complete penetrance.
A mutation in the gene ACVR1 (also known as activin-like kinase 2 [ALK-2]) is responsible for the disease.[4] ACVR1 encodes activin receptor type-1, a BMP type-1 receptor. Symptoms[edit] FOP is a genetic disease. Because the disease is so rare, the symptoms are often misdiagnosed as cancer or fibrosis. Treatment[edit] There is no known cure for FOP.