Prevalence and Clinical Characteristics of Sleeping Paralysis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Cureus January 1, 2024 Mahmoud T Hefnawy, Basma E Amer, Samar A Amer et al. 8 citations
Sleep paralysis (SP) affects approximately 30% of the global population, with notable prevalence among psychiatric patients (35%) and students (34%). An analysis of 76 studies involving 167,133 participants highlighted that while many experienced SP without hallucinations, around 24% reported auditory and visual hallucinations. Notably, only 4% experienced solely visual hallucinations. This phenomenon, marked by a mix of REM sleep and wakefulness, reveals significant implications for mental health, yet it remains underrecognized in broader discussions of sleep disorders.