Restless legs awareness day

23/09/2021

Today we celebrate the Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS), so we will talk about this theme in order to demystify some doubts or total ignorance about RLS.

It’s a chronic and progressive disease with a considerable impact in the patients’ quality of life, causing considerable discomfort in the legs.

Despite appearing at all ages, the most common is to manifest after the age of 45, especially in women. There is also the family component, once there in the clinical history, increases the probability of its appearance. Sometimes, it’s possible to identify the connected health problems, such as iron deficiency, or behaviors that may be linked to diagnosis, such as drug abuse.

Did you know that there are women who have restless leg syndrome during the last trimester of pregnancy? Probably due to a deficiency in folic acid levels. The good news is that usually the symptoms disappear one month after delivery.

Although it seems to be a relatively harmless problem, RLS can create difficulties in falling asleep, disturbances in the quality of sleep and rest, since sleep deprivation and other sleep conditions such as sleep apnea, may aggravate or trigger symptoms in some people.

Imagine that every night, as you prepare to sleep, you begin to feel a strong numbness in your legs, an intense burning or tingling, and this feeling of discomfort only tends to disappear after moving your legs.

Some inappropriate habits such as the use of alcohol, cigarette and caffeine can also interfere with the normal functioning of the nervous system and trigger restless leg syndrome.

Restless leg syndrome has no cure, but your discomfort can be reduced through relaxation techniques or medication ingestion prescribed by your doctor.

However there is treatment, and it should be adjusted case-by-case, depending on the associated factors and the severity of the symptoms. The treatment is aiming to alleviate the manifestations and improve the quality of life for people with this clinical picture.

A good sleep hygiene on a good mattress, having a routine with fixed schedules, physical activity, massages and hot baths, avoid stimulants such as caffeine, tobacco and alcohol as well as the use of medications that aggravate symptoms, are some important aspects to succeed in treatment.

If you suspected that you suffer from RLS, because your frequently need of  move your legs, or the difficulty of doing some tasks become almost impossible.

The diagnosis of restless leg syndrome is usually made by a general or a doctor specializing in sleep disorders. Although there is no test able to confirm the diagnosis, usually the doctor distrusts the syndrome by evaluating the symptoms.

 

 

Bibliography:

• https://www.lusiadas.pt/blog/doencas/sintomas-tratamentos/sindrome-pernas-inquietas-quais-sintomas-como-tratar
• https://institutodosono.com/artigos-noticias/sindrome-das-pernas-inquietas/
• https://www.tuasaude.com/sindrome-das-pernas-inquietas/
• https://www.advancecare.pt/pt-pt/para-si/blog/artigos/pernas-inquietas-podem-ser-sintoma-de-doenca-grave-mas-tratavel
• https://www.msdmanuals.com/pt-pt/casa/dist%C3%BArbios-cerebrais,-da-medula-espinal-e-dos-nervos/dist%C3%BArbios-do-sono/doen%C3%A7a-de-movimento-peri%C3%B3dico-dos-membros-plmd-e-s%C3%ADndrome-das-pernas-inquietas-rls
• https://www.cuf.pt/saude-a-z/sindrome-das-pernas-inquietas
• https://www.sanfil.pt/sindrome-das-pernas-inquietas/