title: The Relationship of Restless Legs Syndrome to History of Pregnancy-Induced Hypertension.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Restless legs syndrome (RLS), a burdensome sleep disorder, has been associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD), hypertension, diabetes, and related disorders. However, the relationship of RLS to history of pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH), a predictor of subsequent CVD, diabetes, and associated conditions, remains little explored. In this study, we investigated the relationship of RLS to history of PIH in a sample of primary care patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants were women aged ≥40 years drawn from an anonymous survey study of West Virginia primary care patients. Data collected included detailed information on demographics, lifestyle factors, sleep patterns, and reproductive/medical history; the survey also included an RLS diagnostic questionnaire. Women who were pregnant or unsure about their pregnancy status were excluded from the analyses.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 498 participants in the final analytic sample, 24.5% met diagnostic criteria for RLS (17.9% with symptoms ≥once/week, 11.9% with symptoms ≥3 times/week); 73 (16.5% of parous women) reported a history of PIH, defined as physician-diagnosed preeclampsia or gestational hypertension. After adjustment for demographics, lifestyle characteristics, obesity, reproductive history, health conditions, and other factors, those reporting a history of PIH were approximately twice as likely to meet criteria for RLS (odds ratio [OR] = 1.9; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.1, 3.6). These associations increased in magnitude with increasing symptom frequency (adjusted OR for RLS with symptoms ≥3 times/week = 3.8; CI 1.9, 7.6; p for trend = 0.003).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  History of PIH was strongly and positively related to current RLS in this study of primary care patients; these findings further support a possible role for metabolic dysregulation in RLS etiology.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Epidemiology, West Virginia University School of Public Health , Morgantown, West Virginia.|2 Center for the Study of Complementary and Alternative Therapies, University of Virginia Health System , Charlottesville, Virginia.|3 Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Virginia Health System , Charlottesville, Virginia.
authors.forename: Kim E
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: Innes
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Epidemiology, West Virginia University School of Public Health , Morgantown, West Virginia.
authors.forename: Sahiti
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kandati
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Epidemiology, West Virginia University School of Public Health , Morgantown, West Virginia.|4 WV Focus: Reproductive Education & Equality , Charleston, West Virginia.
authors.forename: Kathryn L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Flack
authors.affiliation: 5 Department of Pharmaceutical Systems and Policy, West Virginia University School of Pharmacy , Morgantown, West Virginia.
authors.forename: Parul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Agarwal
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Epidemiology, West Virginia University School of Public Health , Morgantown, West Virginia.|2 Center for the Study of Complementary and Alternative Therapies, University of Virginia Health System , Charlottesville, Virginia.
authors.forename: Terry Kit
authors.initials: TK
authors.lastname: Selfe
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D046110:Hypertension, Pregnancy-Induced / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008019:Life Style; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011247:Pregnancy; D015995:Prevalence; D011320:Primary Health Care; D012148:Restless Legs Syndrome / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012893:Sleep Wake Disorders / Q000150:complications; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014903:West Virginia / Q000453:epidemiology