Drowsiness refers to feeling more sleepy than normal during the day. People who are drowsy may fall asleep in when they do not want to or at times which can lead to safety concerns.
Sleepiness - during the day; Hypersomnia; Somnolence
Excessive daytime sleepiness (without a known cause) may be a sign of a sleep disorder.
Depression, anxiety, stress, and boredom can all contribute to excessive sleepiness. However, these conditions more often cause fatigue and apathy.
Drowsiness may be due to the following:
You can relieve drowsiness by treating the cause of the problem. First, determine whether your drowsiness is due to depression, anxiety, boredom, or stress. If you are not sure, talk with your health care provider.
For drowsiness due to medicines, talk to your provider about switching or stopping your medicines. But, DO NOT stop taking or change your medicine without first talking to your provider.
Do not drive when drowsy.
Your provider will examine you to determine the cause of your drowsiness. You will be asked about your sleep patterns and health. Questions may include:
Tests that may be done include:
Treatment depends on the cause of your drowsiness.
Yves Dauvilliers practices in Montpellier, France. Dauvilliers is rated as an Elite expert by MediFind in the treatment of Drowsiness. He is also highly rated in 24 other conditions, according to our data. His top areas of expertise are Excessive Daytime Sleepiness, Drowsiness, Narcolepsy, and Kleine Levin Syndrome.
Giuseppe Plazzi practices in Bologna, Italy. Plazzi is rated as an Elite expert by MediFind in the treatment of Drowsiness. He is also highly rated in 32 other conditions, according to our data. His top areas of expertise are Narcolepsy, Drowsiness, Excessive Daytime Sleepiness, and Sleep Paralysis.
Richard Bogan is a Pulmonary Medicine specialist and a Sleep Medicine expert in Columbia, South Carolina. Bogan has been practicing medicine for over 53 years and is rated as an Elite expert by MediFind in the treatment of Drowsiness. He is also highly rated in 8 other conditions, according to our data. His top areas of expertise are Drowsiness, Narcolepsy, Excessive Daytime Sleepiness, and Obstructive Sleep Apnea. He is licensed to treat patients in South Carolina. Bogan is currently accepting new patients.
Summary: The primary objective of the Nuvigil/Provigil Pregnancy Registry is to characterize the pregnancy and fetal outcomes associated with Nuvigil and Provigil exposure during pregnancy.
Summary: CATNAP is a patient registry designed to improve the understanding of the natural history of narcolepsy in pediatric patients. Descriptive statistics on disease characteristics will be performed. The study has 16 active clinical sites and a virtual site that widens participation to anywhere in the United States. For more information about the study or to access the Online Patient Enrollment System...
Published Date: July 14, 2021
Published By: David C. Dugdale, III, MD, Professor of Medicine, Division of General Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.
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Hirshkowitz M, Sharafkhaneh A. Evaluating sleepiness. In: Kryger M, Roth T, Dement WC, eds. Principles and Practice of Sleep Medicine. 6th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2017:chap 169.
Mansukhani MP, Kolla BP, St.Louis EK, Morgenthaler TI. Sleep disorders. In: Kellerman RD, Rakel DP, eds. Conn's Current Therapy 2021. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier 2021:755-770.