Restless Legs Syndrome Treatments

You are ready to sit down to relax for the evening. Suddenly, your legs start to burn. It feels as if hundreds of ants are crawling under your skin. You experience an uncontrollable need to move. You twitch your legs, stand up, walk around or do any type of movement to relieve the symptoms. If this situation sounds familiar, you may have a condition known as restless leg syndrome.

What Is RLS?

• Restless leg syndrome, or RLS, is a neurological disorder that affects the legs. According to the National Institute of Health, the condition causes uncomfortable sensations, which some describe as burning, the feeling of something creeping inside the legs, tingling under the skin or tugging on the leg. Patients with the condition will have an uncontrollable desire to move their legs to try to relieve the feelings, although the symptoms generally return when movement stops. These symptoms are often worse at night, robbing patients of restful sleep as they constantly move and jerk their legs.

Causes

• According the RLS Foundation, a single cause for the condition has not yet been found. There are some risk factors that seem to point to possible causes. A genetic factor appears to be present, since the syndrome runs in families. Sometimes another underlying condition, such as renal disease, nerve damage or anemia, can cause RLS. Many pregnant women develop temporary restless leg problems. Patients with attention deficit disorder are at higher risk for developing restless leg syndrome, particularly as they mature.

Treatment

• Treatment for restless leg syndrome varies depending on the severity of the condition. There is no cure, but treatment focuses on relief of symptoms. Sometimes exercise and lifestyle changes, such as decreased use of tobacco, alcohol and caffeine, can help mild RLS. Massaging of the legs, using heat or ice on them and taking a hot bath before bedtime can also help. Medications, including central nervous system depressants, anticonvulsants and dopamigergics, are sometimes used to treat RLS. The Food and Drug Administration has officially approved one medication, ropinirole, for treating moderate to severe RLS.

Complications

• In and of itself, RLS is not a dangerous condition. However, it can disrupt sleep patterns. The RLS Foundation states that many RLS patients suffer from periodic limb movements of sleep (PLMS), which causes the person to jerk every 20 to 30 seconds throughout the night. These jerking motions cause the patient to wake up slightly. Even though the patient is unaware of these periods of wakefulness, PLMS does lead to sleep deprivation, which affects a patient's health, social well being and working ability.

Considerations About RLS Medication

• If you are taking medication for restless leg syndrome, be aware that sometimes the medication that once worked may suddenly stop working. When this occurs, your symptoms will start appearing earlier in the day, before you are scheduled to take your medication. This is known as augmentation, and if it occurs, your doctor will need to switch your medication. Also, pregnant women will need to find a restless leg syndrome treatment that does not involve medication, because the medications used to treat RLS are not considered safe during pregnancy, according to Mayo Clinic.