Pneumatic compression device

Please share your experiences, successes, and failures in using non-drug therapies for RLS/WED (methods of relief that don't involve swallowing or injecting anything), including compression, heat, light, stretches, acupuncture, etc. Also under this heading, medical interventions that don't involve the administration of a medicine to the body (eg. varicose-vein operations, deep-brain stimulation). [This forum contains Topics started prior to 2009 that deal with Non-prescription Medicines, Supplements, & Diet.]
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tcd
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Joined: Sun Apr 04, 2010 9:39 pm

Pneumatic compression device

Post by tcd »

Hello, this is my first posting altought I have had rls for about 10 years. In the most recent Nightwalker one of the ask the doctor questions decribed a clinical study using this device. It showed some promise. Has any tried a pneumatic pressure device if so what kind and what were the pro's and con's. Thanks tcd.

SquirmingSusan
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Post by SquirmingSusan »

Hello, and welcome to the forum. I moved this topic to the "Non-Pharmaceutical Therapies" section of the message board since that treatment is non-pharma. It seems like some people have tried that and have had some success. And then some people hate those things...
Susan

sodapop527
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Location: NY

Post by sodapop527 »

I just asked my Dr. the other day if she could prescribe something like that for me and she said absolutly not! When I questioned why, she said that that was something for the heart and not RLS :?: :?: :?:

badnights
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Post by badnights »

You can tell your doc there's recent research indicating that it shows promise for RLS (http://chestjournal.chestpubs.org/content/135/1/74.abstract). There's also an anecdotal letter to Dr. Buchfuhrer on the southern California RLS support group website from a lady who had read the above article; her physician agreed to arrange a trial for her, and at the point she wrote the letter (4 weeks in) she had benefited from it (reduction in meds, not elimination of them). However, in response to an earlier letter enquiring about PCD's , Dr. B replied as follows:
This study was quite interesting and does hold some promise for a leg compression device that may help RLS. However, we really need more information before anyone (expert or otherwise) should recommend any RLS patient to go out and buy one. There is some contradictory evidence on this device as the second (after a very weak preliminary study) done by Rajaram SS, Rudzinskiy P and Walters AS did not find this device to be helpful (although they did run into some technical difficulties with the study).

I would definitely recommend waiting for follow up studies with greater number of patients before going out and buying this very expensive compression device.


No reason not to try it, other than expense.

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