Donepezil in the treatment of narcolepsy.

Chronic excessive sleepiness impairs the daily life of patients suffering from narcolepsy. Antidepressants that enhance synaptic levels of noradrenaline and serotonin have been reported as having some therapeutic efficacy. For that reason, acetylcholinesterase inhibitors, which elevate acetylcholine levels, may have a protective function with respect to narcolepsy and cataplexy. The patient reported in this article received donepezil, 10 mg, for 3 consecutive months and showed an improvement of the Epworth Sleepiness Scale score from 20 up to 14.