Published Research - General Sleep and RLS (WED)

[Sleuth]

I have a lot of gastro problems. I have diverticulitus. I was just on cipro a couple of weeks ago. I don't recall it helping my RLS much.

I will mention this SIBO to my gastro doctor, though. I'll try anything.

Dale

[ViewsAskew]

Interesting research of some older adults with early stage dementia regarding RLS.

[doety]

I haven't followed the whole thread; maybe this has been discussed. One study a few pages back indicated that pregnant women had higher levels of estrogen, and of course that's one time when RLS is really bad. Then comes menopause, where estrogen is depleted and RLS gets worse. Strange. Has estrogen ever been shown to help RLS?

[ViewsAskew]

I haven't followed the whole thread; maybe this has been discussed. One study a few pages back indicated that pregnant women had higher levels of estrogen, and of course that's one time when RLS is really bad. Then comes menopause, where estrogen is depleted and RLS gets worse. Strange. Has estrogen ever been shown to help RLS?

Not that I know of...but something particular to women and probably to reproduction is likely involved simply because women have RLS 3:1 over men until menopause....then it's 1:1 in terms of occurrence.

[Neco]

I always assumed most cases of pregnancy RLS had to do with depleted Iron since the baby uses the mothers blood as well?

[Betty/WV]

Regarding RLS and sleep. I was looking up some information on Mirapex and one of the side effects is INSOMNIA. So even though Mirapex keeps my RLS at bay----I am only sleeping a couple hours at a time. I am right back where I started, almost, before I couldn't sleep because of the RLS, now I can't sleep because of the meds I take for the RLS. I guess its better than the misery of RLS but I need sleep. Sometimes I feel SOOOO confused. Like I'm losing my mind.

And I can't take Ambien, I took it one night and got up and roamed all over the house, and eating things that I didn't remember the next day. Scarey!!

BETTY/WV

[Polar Bear]

Yes, I knew that insomnia was a side effect of Mirapex and Ropinerole (which I am using) and also went through the wide awake nights, even if my legs were behaving themselves.

I then look Ambien which only gave me a couple of hours sleep. My regime actually was to fall asleep for a couple of hours which I could do naturally if my rls was well medicated, then when I woke up I took the Ambien and got another couple of hours.

This still wasn't enough sleep when I was in full time work and I spoke with the doc who then gave me Lunesta and I get about 4 hours out of it.

So on a good night, my pattern is: go to sleep naturally (fingers crossed) for about 2 hours, wake up, take my Lunesta and go to the computer for about an hour until it starts to work. Then hopefully get another maybe 4 hours sleep. Now that I am retired from full time work I am not under the pressure of a time factor.

On occasion, next day, I have read posts that I had forgotten I had posted, I sort of do remember as I read them. I have spent nights getting up and down, in and out, next day would have no idea how often I had been up, and even if I knew it was twice, I would not be able to say at what times, even tho I always look at the clock when I awaken.

And yes, I've also done the middle of the night toast thingy, the packet of choccy cookies, roaming. often the toast and the cookies together during any given nocturnal roaming. Maybe also cornflakes. I really had to take myself in hand and bought really good quality fruit, really juicy strawberries/ clemantines etc. and try and offset the carbs and calories.

What I don't do, is lie in bed and try to sleep when sleep is not there. I get up and use the pc, read, empty the dishwasher etc. etc. .... and eat fruit...... On a rough night its fruit and then the cookies I guess I am afraid if I just lie there that the rls symptoms will kick in (even tho I also take a ropinerole at around 3 am).

Sorry to ramble on here, just want to say, you are not alone. The misery of exhaustion and being unable to sleep is a nightmare. Or it would be a nightmare if you could get to sleep. lol. Sorry - bad joke.

However I still continue to take the sleeping pill. Can't imagine coping without it.

And yes, it is scarey that we can be so forgetful and/or confused when taking a drug to help us.

[Betty/WV]

Sounds like me Polar Bear. I eat also when I am prowling the house. No wonder I am overweight. But that one night I took the Ambien, I in my half concious state, ate half an ice cream cake. The next morning when I didn't see it in the freezer, I blamed my husband for eating it. Then when I found the fork with ice cream on it, it dawned on me that I had eaten it. Scared the wits out of me. What if I had went out of the house or got in the car etc. etc.

I think what I will do, is when I wake up in the middle of the night I will take a tramadol. And see if that helps me get a few more hours sleep.

I found your post interesting. Nice reading it. BETTY/WV

[doety]

I've taken so many meds over the last 16 years, I can't remember what this was -- but I woke up one morning and smelled like chlorine. My bathing suit was wet in the bathroom -- obviously I had gone down to the condo pool and gotten in the hot tub. That's so scary!! There was also another incident where my boyfriend, who lived with me, mentioned something about the "night before." I didn't remember that we had had a "night before." You just wonder what the heck is in these medications -- if some of them can cause a gambling addiction, you don't know what else is in the mix.

[ViewsAskew]

Study Link


I can't tell how new this is, but it links low ferritin in the CFS - cerebrospinal fluid - and high transferrin to folks with RLS. It also found no differences between non RLSers and RLSers in terms of blood ferritin. Huh.

I wonder if those of us with low blood ferritin are the outliers, based on this. I wonder how our symptoms differ?

[ViewsAskew]

Studycomparing sleep EEG profiles of RLS patients and depressed patients. From Journal of Neuropsychobiology.

Abstract below in case the link breaks:

Comparison of Sleep EEG Profiles of Patients Suffering from Restless Legs Syndrome, Restless Legs Syndrome and Depressive Symptoms, and Major Depressive Disorders
Serge Branda, Antreas Lehtinena, Martin Hatzingerb, Edith Holsboer-Trachslera

aDepression Research Unit, Psychiatric Hospital of the University of Basel, and bPsychiatric Outpatient Department, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland

Address of Corresponding Author

Neuropsychobiology 2010;61:41-48 (DOI: 10.1159/000262179)

goto top of page Key Words

* Depressive symptoms
* Major depressive disorders
* Restless legs syndrome
* Polysomnography
* Sleep disorders

goto top of page Abstract

Background: Depressive disorders and restless legs syndrome (RLS) demand particular attention because sleepiness, daytime fatigue and loss of interest are symptoms attributable to both depressive disorders and RLS. Moreover, a high comorbidity rate is observed. The aim of the present study was to compare polysomnographic data of patients suffering from RLS, RLS and depressive symptoms, and major depressive disorders (MDD).

Methods: Sleep EEG recordings of patients suffering from RLS (n = 25), RLS and depressive symptoms (n = 38), as well as MDD (n = 15) were compared. Results: Compared to patients with MDD, both groups with RLS had statistically decreased values of sleep continuity, including sleep efficiency, sleep onset latency and wakening after sleep onset. Patients with RLS or RLS and depressive symptoms had also decreased slow-wave sleep compared to patients with MDD.

Conclusions: Objective sleep assessment supports previous findings: RLS is a disorder seriously affecting sleep, even compared to MDD. Concomitant symptoms of depression do not seem to additionally deteriorate sleep, though they trigger differences in treatment.

[ViewsAskew]

Huh - people undergoing chemo have about double the rate of RLS.

http://www.springerlink.com/content/c363754342g8q818/

[ViewsAskew]

Holy cow...I sure wish I could read this study!

http://www.nature.com/nrgastro/journal/ ... 10.32.html

Nature Reviews Gastroenterology and Hepatology 7, 186 (April 2010) | doi:10.1038/nrgastro.2010.32

IBD: Crohn's disease and restless legs syndrome

Isobel Franks
Abstract

Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is associated with Crohn's disease according to the results of a new study. The authors of this study suggest that RLS could be an extraintestinal manifestation of Crohn's disease.

[Neco]

Forward link to Dr. B and see if he has access / can share thoughts?

[ViewsAskew]

Great thinking, Zach. Must be great minds think alike, lol, as I had the same thought (and did send an email).