Practice parameters for the treatment of narcolepsy: An update for 2000

Successful treatment of narcolepsy requires an accurate diagnosis to exclud e patients with other sleep disorders, which have different treatments, and to avoid unnecessary complications of drug treatment. Treatment objectives should be tailored to individual circumstances. Modafinil, amphetamine, me thamphetamine, dextroamphetamine, methylphenidate, selegiline, pemoline, tr icyclic antidepressants, and fluoxetine are effective treatments for narcol epsy, but the quality of published clinical evidence supporting them varies . Scheduled naps can be beneficial to combat sleepiness, but naps seldom su ffice as primary therapy. Regular follow up of patients with narcolepsy is necessary to educate patients and their families, monitor for complications of therapy and emergent of other sleep disorders, and help the patient ada pt to the disease.