II. Epidemiology
- Possibly Hereditary
III. Pathophysiology
- Episodic loss of motor and Posture control
- Precipitated by laughter or strong emotion
- Unknown cause
IV. Signs
- Sudden decrease or loss of voluntary Muscle tone following emotional trigger (e.g. laughing, surprise)
- Speech is affected
- Episode is transient
- No loss of consciousness
- Episodes are transient, lasting seconds to minutes
- Localized hypotonia (e.g. jaw drop, head nod, knee sag)
- Generalized hypotonia (full collapse onto floor)
V. Associated Conditions
- Narcolepsy (25-30% of Narcolepsy patients have Cataplexy)