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Jactatio nocturna after head injury

Department of Neurology, Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, OH.

Nocturnal head banging or body rocking often occurs in childhood in relation to sleep, and is generally considered a developmental or behavioral disorder. A few cases of Jactatio nocturna have been considered manifestations of sleep disorder, and an analogy to somnambulism and pavor nocturnus has been suggested. We observed episodes of Jactatio nocturna in a patient with global encephalopathy and frontal lobe dysfunction after closed head injury, and successfully treated these with imipramine. Sleep disorders are increasingly recognized after head injury; Jactatio nocturna must be differentiated from post-traumatic seizures, and may represent partial or defective arousal during light non-REM sleep, analogous to the parasomnias of deeper sleep and possibly representing dysfunction of frontal arousal mechanisms.

Address correspondence and reprint requests to Dr. Drake, 463 Means Hall, 1655 Upham Drive, Columbus, OH 43210.

Accepted for publication October 30, 1985.

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