Sleep,the body’s natural recharger is considered as one ofthe quintessential need for existence of all the living beings. From an era ofsleeping in plenty we have now moved towards a sleep deprived society. Amongthose man- made reasons for sleep deprivation such as late night socialisation,screen time, stress etc., there are a few medical conditions that are veryprevalent yet go unnoticed due to the lack of awareness. Restless leg syndrome(RLS) is one such neurological condition that causes insomnia and compromiseswith the quality of life.
SYMPTOMS:
People suffering from restless leg syndrome perceiveunpleasant sensations in their legs when their limbs are at rest. Symptomsinitially start at night time when the affected person retires to bed . These unpleasantsensations can be nagging, aching, creeping or sometimes burning and getpleasantly relived by massage to the affected part or when the limbs are movedor rocked. This hinders with falling asleep and most patients would either beconstantly moving their legs or massaging them until they become too fatiguedbefore falling sleep. Over years the condition gets augmented and becomes verysevere in nature or may ascend up to involve the trunk or sometimes even arms. Theworsening also is noticed when the symptoms start to appear in the evening orlate afternoon when the affected person is sitting idle. This condition occursdue to the dysfunction of basal ganglia that is located deep inside the brain.The condition is not associated with any permanent deficits like numbness orweakness as noticed with peripheral neuropathy
WHO ARE AT RISK?
Restless leg syndrome can be familial or acquired. Personswith familial RLS have the symptoms early in life but progress gradually unlikethe acquired ones that worsen rapidly. RLS affects women more than men and canbe noticed in many women during the later parts of pregnancy. Pregnancy relatedRLS resolves postpartum. Among other acquired causes are low iron stores in thebody, intake of coffee, alcohol, antidepressant and antipsychiatricmedications. RLS can also occur secondary to peripheral nerve disorder or spinedisc disorders and in patients with Parkinson’s disease
WHAT TO DO IF YOU HAVE SYMPTOMS SUGGESTIVE OF RESTLESS LEG SYNDROME?
If you spot your symptoms to be suggestive of a RLS,approach your neurologist to get evaluated for the cause. There are medicationsthat can keep the RLS symptoms under control that your neurologist choosesaccording to the clinical profile. Evening time stretching exercises, warm waterbath before sleep, distracting techniques like reading books before sleep and avoidanceof coffee/ alcohol can augment the effects of medication.