The effect of sleep deprivation on motor impairment and retinal adaptation in Parkinson's disease.

1. Sleep deprivation has previously been reported to result in a temporary improvement of motor deficits in Parkinson's disease patients. 2. The mechanism of this action is unclear but may involve an activation of dopamine pathways. 3. Other studies suggest that light adaptive changes in the retinal pigment epithelium may serve as a model of dopamine sensitivity. 4. The present study examined the effects of one night of total sleep deprivation on RPE potentials and motor abnormalities in Parkinson's patients. 5. Sleep deprivation significantly improved motor deficits and these changes were strongly correlated with increases in light adaptive RPE potentials.