Restless Leg Syndrome Symptoms, Causes, Diagnosis and Treatment
What Is Restless Leg Syndrome ?
Restless legs syndrome is a medical condition having a strong need to move legs in different positions, usually because of leg discomfort. Typically, it happens in the nights or evenings while you are lying or sitting down. Moving comforts the nasty feeling temporarily.
Restless legs syndrome can occur at any age and worsens usually as you age further. It can disturb sleep, leading to drowsiness and make traveling challenging.
What Are The Symptoms Of Restless Leg Syndrome ?
The convincing desire to move legs is the cause of restless legs syndrome. Common RLS characteristics of signs and symptoms consist of:
- Start of Sensation after doing rest. Typically, the sensation starts after you have been sitting or lying down for a prolonged time, for example in an airplane, movie theater or car.
- Movement Relief: The RLS sensation with movement, like jiggling, stretching your legs, walking or pacing.
- Symptoms worsening in the evening: Mainly, Symptoms occur at night.
- Leg twitching during Night: RLS might associated with more common state known as periodic sleep limb movement, which makes your legs to kick and twitch, possibly while sleeping.
The sensations occur generally within the limb are defined as:
- Crawling
- Pulling
- Creeping
- Throbbing
- Aching
- Itching
What Are The Causes Of Restless Leg Syndromes ?
There is no known restless legs syndrome cause. Investigators suspect the state may be because of secretion of chemical dopamine in the brain as dopamine sends message to control muscular movement.
Heredity
Occasionally, RLS is present genetically, if the disease appears after 50 years. Investigators have isolated websites on the chromosomes where RLS genes are present.
Pregnancy
Hormonal changes or Pregnancy may worsen RLS symptoms for time being. Some women attain RLS during pregnancy for the first time, particularly in their last trimester. Though, symptoms vanish after delivery.
How Restless Leg Syndrome Is Diagnosis ?
If a person is suffering from restless leg syndrome, doctor may perform a neurological and a physical examination. Particularly, Blood tests for iron deficiency might be ordered to reject other possible symptoms causes.
Moreover, the doctor may talk about you a sleep specialist. The sleep specialist may ask you to have overnight stay at his clinic so that he can examine your sleep if there si presence of other sleeps disorder like sleep apnea. Though, a RLS diagnosis usually does not require a sleep examination.
How Restless Leg Syndrome Is Treatment ?
At times, treating a basic condition, for instance iron deficiency, significantly relieves restless legs syndrome symptoms. To correct iron deficiency, iron supplements are prescribed. However, the use of iron supplements must be done under supervision of doctor and after checking blood-iron level.
Medication Therapy
A number of medications were developed to cure other diseases as well as available to diminish the restlessness in the sufferers’ legs. These consist of:
- Medications to increase dopamine levels in the brain: Neupro (rotigotine), Ropinirole (Requip), and Mirapex (pramipexole).
- Drugs acting on calcium channels. Several medications like Neurontin (gabapentin) and Lyrica (pregabalin), work for people with RLS.
- Opioids. These drugs include oxycodone (Roxicodone, Oxycontin) and codeine.
By : Natural Health News