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REST General Population Study

Richard P. Allen, PhD; Arthur S. Walters, MD; Jacques Montplaisir, MD, PhD; Wayne Hening, MD, PhD; Andrew Myers, PhD; Timothy J. Bell, PhD; Luigi Ferini-Strambi, MD

Arch Intern Med. 2005;165:1286-1292.

Background  Restless legs syndrome (RLS), a common sensorimotor disorder, has a wide range of severity from merely annoying to affecting sleep and quality of life severely enough to warrant medical treatment. Previous epidemiological studies, however, have failed to determine the prevalence of those with clinically significant RLS symptoms and to examine the life effects and medical experiences of this group.

Methods  A total of 16 202 adults (aged 18 years) were interviewed using validated diagnostic questions to determine the presence, frequency, and severity of RLS symptoms; respondents reporting RLS symptoms were asked about medical diagnoses and the impact of the disorder and completed the Short Form-36 Health Survey (SF-36). Criteria determined by RLS experts for medically significant RLS (frequency at least twice a week, distress at least moderate) defined "RLS sufferers" as a group most likely to warrant medical treatment.

Results  In all, 15 391 fully completed questionnaires were obtained; in the past year, RLS symptoms of any frequency were reported by 1114 (7.2%). Symptoms occurred at least weekly for 773 respondents (5.0%); they occurred at least 2 times per week and were reported as moderately or severely distressing by 416 (2.7%). Of those 416 (termed RLS sufferers), 337 (81.0%) reported discussing their symptoms with a primary care physician, and only 21 (6.2%) were given a diagnosis of RLS. The SF-36 scores for RLS sufferers were significantly below population norms, matching those of patients with other chronic medical conditions.

Conclusion  Clinically significant RLS is common (prevalence, 2.7%), is underdiagnosed, and significantly affects sleep and quality of life.

Author Affiliations: Department of Neurology, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md (Dr Allen); New Jersey Neuroscience Institute at JFK Medical Center, Edison, and School of Graduate Medical Education, Seton Hall University, South Orange, NJ (Dr Walters); Departments of Psychiatry and Neurosciences, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec (Dr Montplaisir); Department of Neurology, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, New Brunswick (Dr Hening); Premark Services Ltd, Crawley Down, West Sussex, England (Dr Myers); Health Solutions, Research Triangle Institute, Research Triangle Park, NC (Dr Bell); and Department of Neurosciences, Università Vita–Salute San Raffaele, Milan, Italy (Dr Ferini-Strambi). Dr Bell is now with the Gastrointestinal Research and Development Group of GlaxoSmithKline, Research Triangle Park.

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