title: The role of the saphenous nerve in insomnia: a proposed etiology of restless legs syndrome.
abstract: Entrapment of the saphenous nerve after emergence from its lumbar roots and before its distribution to the medial surface of the leg is suggested as a cause of Restless Legs Syndrome (other anomalies of the saphenous nerve, especially those where the nerve is part of a general neuropathy, are not considered here). This finding is supported by evidence which: 1) identifies Restless Legs Syndrome as a nerve entrapment syndrome from: the dysesthesia in Meralgia Paresthetica, the paraesthesiae of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and the poorly localized pain in pronator syndrome and suprascapular nerve entrapment; 2) isolates the saphenous nerve as the entrapped nerve from the patient's difficulty in identifying the precise area of sensation in saphenous nerve entrapment at Hunter's Canal; 3) localizes the pelvic region as the site of entrapment from rates of Restless Legs Syndrome of 11 and 19% in pregnant women, a correlation between chronic nonspecific prostatitis and Restless Legs Syndrome.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Lewis
mesh_terms: D005260:Female; D005267:Femoral Nerve / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D007866:Leg / Q000294:innervation*; D008297:Male; D009408:Nerve Compression Syndromes / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000503:physiopathology; D011472:Prostatitis / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology; D012148:Restless Legs Syndrome / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology