TITLE:
Restless Legs Syndrome in Liver Transplant Recipients
AUTHORS:
Rose Franco, Syed Rizvi, Jose Franco, Farhan Rizvi
KEYWORDS:
Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS); Liver Transplant; Prevalence
JOURNAL NAME:
International Journal of Clinical Medicine,
Vol.4 No.3,
March
22,
2013
ABSTRACT: Background: The prevalence of restless legs syndrome (RLS)
is approximately 10% in general
population. This condition is more prevalent in certain diseases and we previously reported the prevalence of RLS in
chronic liver disease population to be 62%. Objectives: Our aim was to assess the self-reported
prevalence of RLS using an RLS symptom
specific questionnaire in liver transplant patients. Methods: Subjects were a convenience sample in
transplant clinic. They completed a validated
survey for core RLS symptoms and if positive went on to completed a telephone survey using the validated
International RLS Severity Scale Questionnaire (IRLS)
and the Johns Hopkins RLS QoL survey to measure the effect of RLS symptoms on daily activities. Results: 40 patients surveyed, RLS was found in 16
subjects (40%) with moderate severity {17
(SD + 7.2, high score 31)}. Hepatitis C as indication for liver transplant was more likely associated with RLS (p = 0.05).
Calcium channel blockers were protective (p = 0.032) while
antidopaminergic agent use was statistically significant for RLS symptom (p = 0.005). On multiple linear regression analysis,
diabetes (p = 0.024) and use of
antidepressants/antihistamines (p = 0.049) were associated with RLS. Quality of Life (QoL) surveys specific to RLS
suggested RLS symptoms resulted in significantly
diminished QoL, with an average QoL score of 80 (SD + 11.7). Conclusion: There was a very high prevalence of RLS in our liver transplant patients with majority experiencing moderate or severe
symptoms.
The explanation for this higher
prevalence is likely due to combination of comorbidites as well as medications that can trigger RLS.