Researchers explore treatments for illness-induced lethargy
Buying drugs from a Canadian online pharmacy can help Americans save money, whether they are trying to fend off high blood pressure, slow the progression of breast cancer or simply get a better night's rest.
Buying drugs from a Canadian online pharmacy can help Americans save money, whether they are trying to fend off high blood pressure, slow the progression of breast cancer or simply get a better night's rest. Recently, a study conducted at the Oregon Health and Science University Doernbecher Children's Hospital reported that a sleep-regulating system in the brain may induce lethargy when a person is sick.
Lead author Daniel L. Marks and his colleagues, who published their research in the Journal of Neuroscience, explained that developing a new class of drugs to treat sleep disorders could reverse the fatigue and inactivity associated with acute illness. Medications that were initially made to treat narcolepsy could help restore energy and motivation in people who suffer from many different diseases.
"Well all know what it means to feel 'bad' when we're acutely ill," Marks said. "In particular, patients with chronic diseases experience a compromise in motivated behaviors. They don't feel like getting up and doing anything, yet the brain mechanisms behind this common experience have remained obscure."
He added that the findings suggest new therapeutic strategies for treating sickness-induced lethargy.
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