What is Rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder?

Rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder or REM behavior disorder is a sleep disorder in which people act out their dreams. It involves abnormal behavior during the sleep phase with rapid eye movement sleep. The major feature of RBD is loss of muscle atonia during otherwise intact REM sleep. The loss of motor inhibition leads to sleep behaviors ranging from simple limb twitches to more complex integrated movements that can be violent or result in injury to either the individual or their bedmates.

RBD is a very strong predictor of progression to a synucleinopathy. Melatonin is useful in the treatment of RBD. RBD was first described in 1986.