Large multinational general population study shows restless legs syndrome is common, under-diagnosed

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Large multinational general population study shows restless legs

syndrome is common, under-diagnosed

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. – (June 13, 2005) – The first

multinational study to assess patients considered to have diagnostic

criteria for Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS), a chronic and disruptive

neurological disorder characterized by a compelling urge to move the

legs, found that the condition is common, under-diagnosed, and can

significantly impact sleep and daily activities. Results of the

R.E.S.T. (RLS Epidemiology, Symptoms, and Treatment) General Population

Study, a population-based survey completed by telephone and

face-to-face interviews, are published in the current issue of the

Archives of Internal Medicine, a peer-reviewed journal of the American

Medical Association. Another arm of the R.E.S.T. study, called the

R.E.S.T. Primary Care Study, was published in the May 2004 issue of the

journal Sleep Medicine, and included epidemiological information on RLS

gathered from patients and doctors at primary care centers in the U.S.

and Europe.

After obtaining background information from 15,391 study participants,

researchers collected details from the respondents that reported

experiencing RLS symptoms at any time in the past year, about the

frequency and nature of their RLS symptoms, the degree of associated

distress, and prior physician consultation and diagnosis. The

percentage of patients who reported having RLS symptoms at any

frequency was 7.2 percent. A subset of these patients (2.7 percent of

study participants overall), defined as RLS sufferers, reported having

symptoms two to three times per week and symptoms that were moderately

or severely distressing (n=416). Eighty-one percent of these RLS

sufferers (n=337) reported discussing their symptoms with a primary

care physician yet only 6.2 percent indicated that they were given a

diagnosis of RLS.

" One of the biggest issues facing those with symptoms of Restless Legs

Syndrome is obtaining appropriate diagnosis and management, " said

L. Earl, M.D., Group Director Clinical Neurology, GlaxoKline, the

company that funded the R.E.S.T. General Population Study. " Millions of

people suffer from RLS yet some physicians may not connect certain

physical and sensorimotor symptoms to RLS, resulting in a sizeable

population that is not getting medical attention or diagnosis. "

In addition to a compelling urge to move the legs, RLS is characterized

by uncomfortable or sometimes painful sensations in the legs often

described as creeping-crawling, tingling, pulling or tightening.

Symptoms of RLS generally occur at rest, such as when sitting, lying or

sleeping, and are temporarily relieved by movement. RLS encompasses a

range of severity that includes mild, moderate and severe symptoms.

The frequency of any RLS symptoms in the total study population was

approximately twice as high for women as it was for men (9 percent vs.

5.4 percent). Prevalence of the condition increased up to age 79 and

then declined. While RLS patients are generally older, of the group

defined as RLS sufferers, 36 percent of the RLS sufferers in the

R.E.S.T. General Population study were age 49 or younger.

RLS Impact on Sleep and Daily Activities

The R.E.S.T. General Population study found that among the subset of

patients defined as RLS sufferers, more than 75 percent of these

patients reported at least one sleep related symptom. Disturbance of

daytime activities was reported by 55.5 percent of RLS sufferers.

Disrupted sleep, the inability to fall asleep and insufficient hours of

sleep are common among RLS sufferers.

Quality of life was evaluated in this study using the Short Form – 36

Health Survey (SF36), an extensively tested and validated tool that

assesses eight dimensions of health-related quality of life: physical

functioning, physical limitations on normal role activities, bodily

pain, general health, energy and vitality, social functioning,

emotional limitations on normal role activities, and mental health.

Researchers observed that the RLS sufferers had lower quality of life

scores than the general population and concluded that their quality of

life appears to be comparable with that experienced by patients with

other chronic medical conditions such as type 2 diabetes and clinical

depression.

The study authors believe that patient complaints of sleep

abnormalities as well as daytime performance-related effects including

difficulty concentrating should be clues to physicians that a patient

may be suffering from RLS.

Of the RLS sufferers identified in the study that did seek medical

attention (81percent), 74.8 percent recalled receiving a diagnosis for

their symptoms, but only 6.2 percent reported being diagnosed with RLS.

Poor circulation (18.3 percent), arthritis (14.3 percent) and back

problems (12.7 percent) were the most common diagnoses reported.