title: Treatment of restless legs syndrome and periodic movements during sleep with L-dopa: a double-blind, controlled study.
abstract: Six patients with restless legs syndrome (RLS) and periodic movements during sleep (PMS) received placebo or L-dopa in a double-blind study. We recorded patients for 36 consecutive hours in the sleep laboratory during a baseline investigation and at the end of each treatment period. Daily evening questionnaires and a suggested immobilization test (SIT) performed at bedtime on each recording night documented the effect of L-dopa in RLS. A nocturnal EMG recording of the anterior tibialis muscles revealed the effect of L-dopa on PMS. L-Dopa proved effective in treating both RLS and PMS. Although not present in every patient, leg movements recorded during the SIT exhibited a clear periodicity. These observations support the hypothesis that RLS and PMS are two manifestations of the same central sensorimotor disorder.
authors.affiliation: Centre d'etude du sommeil, Hôpital Sacré-Coeur et Faculté de Médicine, Université de Montréal, Québec, Canada.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Brodeur
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Montplaisir
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Godbout
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Marinier
mesh_terms: D001545:Benserazide / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007980:Levodopa / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009069:Movement Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy*; D010507:Periodicity; D011930:Reaction Time; D012148:Restless Legs Syndrome / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology; D012890:Sleep / Q000187:drug effects; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D007980:Levodopa; D001545:Benserazide