<P> Claims of total sleep deprivation lasting years have been made several times, but none are scientifically verified . Claims of partial sleep deprivation are better documented . For example, Rhett Lamb of St. Petersburg, Florida, was initially reported to not sleep at all, but actually had a rare condition permitting him to sleep only one to two hours per day in the first three years of his life . He had a rare abnormality called an Arnold - Chiari malformation where brain tissue protrudes into the spinal canal and the skull puts pressure on the protruding part of the brain . The boy was operated on at All Children's Hospital in St. Petersburg in May 2008 . Two days after surgery he slept through the night . </P> <P> French sleep expert Michel Jouvet and his team reported the case of a patient who was quasi-sleep - deprived for four months, as confirmed by repeated polygraphic recordings showing less than 30 minutes (of stage - 1 sleep) per night, a condition they named "agrypnia". The 27 - year - old man was suffering from Morvan's fibrillary chorea, a rare disease that leads to involuntary movements, and in this particular case, extreme insomnia . The researchers found that treatment with 5 - HTP restored almost normal sleep stages, however some months after this recovery the patient died during a relapse which was unresponsive to 5 - HTP . Despite the extreme insomnia, psychological investigation showed no sign of cognitive deficits, except for some hallucinations . </P> <P> Fatal familial insomnia is a neurodegenerative disease eventually resulting in a complete inability to go past stage 1 of NREM sleep . In addition to insomnia, patients may experience panic attacks, paranoia, phobias, hallucinations, rapid weight loss, and dementia . Death usually occurs between 7 and 36 months from onset . </P>

What are the effects of extreme sleep deprivation