Based on 339 cases this review identifies, quantifies and compares 4 clinical forms of recurrent hypersomnia (1) Kleine-Levin syndrome (KLS) (239 cases), (2) Kleine-Levin syndrome without compulsive eating (KLS WOCE) (54 cases), (3) Menstrual related hypersomnia (MRH) (18 cases) and Recurrent hypersomnia with comorbidity (RHC) (28 cases). A second part of the review considers the main current issues on recurrent hypersomnia: the predisposing factors, including a window on family cases; the pathophysiology based on clinical patterns, neuroimaging data, neuropathological examinations and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) hypocretin-1 measurements; the issues of recurrence and of a possible disruption of the circadian timing system; the relationships between recurrent hypersomnia and mood disorders; and a note on the atypical Kleine-Levin syndrome. The main outcomes of this study are a clear nosologic distinction of the different forms of recurrent hypersomnia, the finding that the prevalence of familial cases of KLS is in the same range as in narcolepsy, the suggestion of the possible involvement of a large set of cortical and subcortical structures in recurrent hypersomnia and some clues in favour of a relationship between recurrent hypersomnia and mood disorders.
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