WCN 2021 | Update on the evaluation and management of narcolepsy

Claudio Bassetti, MD, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital and University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland, outlines the newly published European guidelines and expert consensus statements on the management of narcolepsy. Recommendations were development by a task force of narcolepsy specialists via a systematic review of the literature. For the first time, recommendations have been set out for the management of narcolepsy in children as well as adults. Pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions were evaluated, but the evidence to support the use of non-pharmacological methods was weak. Pharmacological agents were recommended for symptomatic management of excessive daytime sleepiness, cataplexy, and nocturnal sleep disturbances. Prof. Bassetti also discusses the knowledge gaps highlighted by the development of these guidelines, including the treatment of comorbidities and evidence from the use of functional outcomes in studies. This interview took place during the XXV World Congress of Neurology.