title: Medication use in patients with restless legs syndrome compared with a control population.
abstract: Primary restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a sensorimotor disorder causing chronic sleep deprivation in those with moderate to severe symptoms. It has been associated with other medical conditions, such as high blood pressure, depression and attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD). If these conditions are more prevalent for RLS patients, then it would be expected RLS patients would use relatively more of the medications treating these conditions. Current medication use was obtained from 110 RLS patients and 54 age, race and gender-matched local-community controls. Each subject was diagnosed as primary RLS or having no indications for RLS by a clinician board-certified in sleep medicine. The RLS group used more medications than the control group even when medications used for treating RLS were excluded. Significantly more of the RLS patients than controls used anti-depressants, gastro-intestinal (GI) medications and asthma/allergy medications. RLS patients compared with those without RLS are more likely to use medications not related to treating RLS. Moreover they use medications for conditions that have not previously been considered related to RLS, i.e. GI and asthma/allergy conditions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology and Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
authors.forename: V E
authors.initials: VE
authors.lastname: Pearson
authors.forename: C E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Gamaldo
authors.forename: R P
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Allen
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lesage
authors.forename: W A
authors.initials: WA
authors.lastname: Hening
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Earley
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D018926:Anti-Allergic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000928:Antidepressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001327:Autoimmune Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology; D015331:Cohort Studies; D015897:Comorbidity; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D005765:Gastrointestinal Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005767:Gastrointestinal Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012148:Restless Legs Syndrome / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology
chemical_list: D018926:Anti-Allergic Agents; D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents; D000928:Antidepressive Agents; D005765:Gastrointestinal Agents