Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels in restless legs syndrome patients.
OBJECTIVE
Restless legs syndrome is characterised by discomfort during rest and an urge to move the limbs that is accompanied by abnormal sensations. Studies on disease pathophysiology have focused on dopaminergic dysfunction. Vitamin D may play an important role in dopamine function, but the role of vitamin D in restless legs syndrome has not been examined. We compared the serum vitamin D levels of RLS patients and matched controls and explored the correlation of plasma vitamin D levels with disease severity.


METHODS
We measured serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels in 36 patients with restless legs syndrome and compared them to 38 healthy control subjects.


RESULTS
The mean serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels were 7.31±4.63 ng/mL in female patients with restless legs syndrome and 12.31±5.27 ng/mL in female control subjects (p=0.001). We found a significant inverse correlation between vitamin D levels and disease severity in females (p=0.01, r=-0.47).


CONCLUSIONS
The mean serum vitamin D levels were lower in female patients with restless legs syndrome. Low vitamin D levels may cause dopaminergic dysfunction in restless legs syndrome patients. Further studies are required to confirm these results.
Department of Neurology, Cumhuriyet University, Faculty of Medicine, TR-58140 Sivas, Turkey. haticebalaban@yahoo.com
Hatice
H
Balaban
Özlem Kayım
ÖK
Yıldız
Gülsüm
G
Çil
İlteriş Ahmet
İA
Şentürk
Taner
T
Erselcan
Ertuğrul
E
Bolayır
Suat
S
Topaktaş
D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012148:Restless Legs Syndrome / Q000097:blood* / Q000503:physiopathology; D012737:Sex Factors; D014807:Vitamin D / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000097:blood
D014807:Vitamin D; C104450:25-hydroxyvitamin D