0798 “Uncovering My Feet Alleviates My Restless Legs”: Impact of Different Activities and Conditions on Restless Legs Symptoms

Abstract

Abstract Introduction The restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a resting wake state disorder with inactivity/decreased movement as an aggravating factor and activity/increased movement as an alleviating factor. Other activities and conditions may impact RLS symptoms but have not been systematically studied. Methods Fifty-six patients with primary severe RLS (age: 64.1±11.3; 66% women) responded about the effect of 20 activities/conditions on their RLS symptoms. Responses were assigned a numerical value: Aggravation (-1), No effect/Don’t know (0), Alleviation (+1), with calculating a mean effect score for each activity/condition and using a sign test to determine if that score was significantly above or below zero (no effect). Responses were further analyzed based on age, age at RLS onset, duration of RLS, RLS severity, gender, Familial/Non-familial RLS, and Painful/Non-Painful RLS. Association of continuous variables and categorical variables with each activity/condition was examined using Spearman correlation test and Fisher exact test, respectively. Bonferroni p threshold was set at p=0.00036. Results Activities/conditions with significant (p<0.0001) positive mean effect scores were: Feet uncovering (0.70); Leg massaging (0.63); Cold showers (0.54); and Manual activities (0.46). Activities with significant negative mean effect scores were: Vehicle passenger (-0.80); Show attendance (-0.70); Bedsheets weight on legs (-0.57); Watching TV (-0.54); High ambient temperature (-0.45); During meals (-0.39) (all p<0.0001); and Bedsheets rubbing on legs (-0.34; p=0.0002). Activities/conditions with no significant (all p>0.00036) mean effect scores were: Driving (0.00); Gambling (0.02); Professional activities (0.13); Hot showers (0.13); Using computer (0.14); Low ambient temperature (0.21); Sexual activities (0.27); Mental activities (0.29); and Sports activities (0.34). There was no significant association between each activity/condition and age, age at RLS onset, duration of RLS, RLS severity, gender, Familial/Non-familial RLS, or Painful/Non-Painful RLS. Conclusion There is a wide range of impact of different activities/conditions on RLS symptoms. These could be further considered in the non-pharmacological treatment or prevention of RLS symptoms. Support This study was not funded.