Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Epidemiologic Evidence in Cardiovascular Disease

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Restless Legs Syndrome/Willis Ekbom Disease

  • 607 Accesses

Abstract

Restless legs syndrome (RLS) and periodic limb movements during sleep (PLMS) are two common sleep disorders, affecting approximately 5–10% of the general population. The association between RLS/PLMS and cardiovascular disease and cardiovascular risk factors has been examined extensively during the past decade. However, most of these studies are cross-sectional and thus the temporary relationship between RLS and CVD cannot be determined. There are only few well-designed prospective studies on this topic available to date, generating inconsistent results. Further large-scale prospective studies, using standardized approach for RLS/PLMS assessment, are warranted.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 129.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Broman JE, Mallon L, Hetta J. Restless legs syndrome and its relationship with insomnia symptoms and daytime distress: epidemiological survey in Sweden. Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2008;62:472–5.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Earley CJ, Silber MH. Restless legs syndrome: understanding its consequences and the need for better treatment. Sleep Med. 2010;11:807–15.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Yang C, Winkelman JW. Clinical and polysomnographic characteristics of high frequency leg movements. J Clin Sleep Med. 2010;6:431–8.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  4. Allen RP, Walters AS, Montplaisir J, Hening W, Myers A, et al. Restless legs syndrome prevalence and impact: REST general population study. Arch Intern Med. 2005;165:1286–92.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Hornyak M. Depressive disorders in restless legs syndrome: epidemiology, pathophysiology and management. CNS Drugs. 2010;24:89–98.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Ohayon MM, O’Hara R, Vitiello MV. Epidemiology of restless legs syndrome: a synthesis of the literature. Sleep Med Rev. 2012;16:283–95.

    Google Scholar 

  7. Loewen A, Siemens A, Hanly P. Sleep disruption in patients with sleep apnea and end-stage renal disease. J Clin Sleep Med. 2009;5:324–9.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  8. Merlino G, Fratticci L, Valente M, Del Giudice A, Noacco C, et al. Association of restless legs syndrome in type 2 diabetes: a case-control study. Sleep. 2007;30:866–71.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  9. Araujo SM, de Bruin VM, Nepomuceno LA, Maximo ML, Daher Ede F, et al. Restless legs syndrome in end-stage renal disease: clinical characteristics and associated comorbidities. Sleep Med. 2010;11:785–90.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Gao X, Schwarzschild MA, Wang H, Ascherio A. Obesity and restless legs syndrome in men and women. Neurology. 2009;72:1255–61.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  11. Li Y, Walters AS, Chiuve SE, Rimm EB, Winkelman JW, et al. Prospective study of restless legs syndrome and coronary heart disease among women. Circulation. 2012;126:1689–94.

    Google Scholar 

  12. Li Y, Mirzaei F, O’Reilly EJ, Winkelman JW, Malhotra A, et al. Prospective study of restless legs syndrome and risk of depression in women. Am J Epidemiol. 2012;176:279–88.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  13. Phillips B, Young T, Finn L, Asher K, Hening WA, et al. Epidemiology of restless legs symptoms in adults. Arch Intern Med. 2000;160:2137–41.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Ohayon MM, Roth T. Prevalence of restless legs syndrome and periodic limb movement disorder in the general population. J Psychosom Res. 2002;53:547–54.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Kim J, Choi C, Shin K, Yi H, Park M, et al. Prevalence of restless legs syndrome and associated factors in the Korean adult population: the Korean health and genome study. Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2005;59:350–3.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Moller C, Wetter TC, Koster J, Stiasny-Kolster K. Differential diagnosis of unpleasant sensations in the legs: prevalence of restless legs syndrome in a primary care population. Sleep Med. 2010;11:161–6.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Winter AC, Berger K, Glynn RJ, Buring JE, Gaziano JM, et al. Vascular risk factors, cardiovascular disease, and restless legs syndrome in men. Am J Med. 2013; 126:228–35, e221–2.

    Google Scholar 

  18. Winter AC, Schurks M, Glynn RJ, Buring JE, Gaziano JM, et al. Vascular risk factors, cardiovascular disease, and restless legs syndrome in women. Am J Med. 2013;126:220–27, e221–2.

    Google Scholar 

  19. Sevim S, Dogu O, Camdeviren H, Bugdayci R, Sasmaz T, et al. Unexpectedly low prevalence and unusual characteristics of RLS in Mersin, Turkey. Neurology. 2003;61:1562–9.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Berger K, Luedemann J, Trenkwalder C, John U, Kessler C. Sex and the risk of restless legs syndrome in the general population. Arch Intern Med. 2004;164:196–202.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. De Vito K, Li Y, Batool-Anwar S, Ning Y, Han J, et al. Prospective study of obesity, hypertension, high cholesterol and risk of restless legs syndrome. Mov Disord. 2014;29(8):1044–52.

    Google Scholar 

  22. Szentkiralyi A, Volzke H, Hoffmann W, Happe S, Berger K. A time sequence analysis of the relationship between cardiovascular risk factors, vascular diseases and restless legs syndrome in the general population. J Sleep Res. 2013;22:434–42.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. Ulfberg J, Nyström B, Carter N, Edling C. Prevalence of restless legs syndrome among men aged 18 to 64 years: an association with somatic disease and neuropsychiatric symptoms. Mov Disord. 2001;16:1159–63.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  24. Phillips B, Hening W, Britz P, Mannino D. Prevalence and correlates of restless legs syndrome*. Chest. 2006;129:76–80.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  25. Budhiraja P, Budhiraja R, Goodwin JL, Allen RP, Newman AB, et al. Incidence of restless legs syndrome and its correlates. J Clin Sleep Med JCSM Official Publ Am Acad Sleep Med. 2012;8:119–24.

    Google Scholar 

  26. Szentkiralyi A, Volzke H, Hoffmann W, Baune BT, Berger K. The relationship between depressive symptoms and restless legs syndrome in two prospective cohort studies. Psychosom Med. 2013;75:359–65.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  27. Schlesinger I, Erikh I, Avizohar O, Sprecher E, Yarnitsky D. Cardiovascular risk factors in restless legs syndrome. Mov Disord. 2009;24:1587–92.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  28. Winkelman JW, Finn L, Young T. Prevalence and correlates of restless legs syndrome symptoms in the Wisconsin Sleep Cohort. Sleep Med. 2006;7:545–52.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  29. Winkelman JW, Shahar E, Sharief I, Gottlieb DJ. Association of restless legs syndrome and cardiovascular disease in the sleep heart health study. Neurology. 2008;70:35–42.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. Espinar-Sierra J, Vela-Bueno A, Luque-Otero M. Periodic leg movements in sleep in essential hypertension. Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 1997;51:103–7.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  31. Elwood P, Hack M, Pickering J, Hughes J, Gallacher J. Sleep disturbance, stroke, and heart disease events: evidence from the Caerphilly cohort. J Epidemiol Commun Health. 2006;60:69–73.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Li Y, Walters AS, Chiuve SE, Rimm EB, Winkelman JW, et al. Prospective study of restless legs syndrome and coronary heart disease among women. Circulation. 2012;126:1689–94.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  33. Winter AC, Schurks M, Glynn RJ, Buring JE, Gaziano JM, et al. Restless legs syndrome and risk of incident cardiovascular disease in women and men: prospective cohort study. BMJ Open. 2012;2:e000866.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  34. Jose PA, Eisner GM, Felder RA. Role of dopamine in the pathogenesis of hypertension. Clin Exp Pharmacol Physiol Suppl. 1999;26:S10–3.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  35. Ali NJ, Davies RJ, Fleetham JA, Stradling JR. Periodic movements of the legs during sleep associated with rises in systemic blood pressure. Sleep. 1991;14:163–5.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  36. Gangwisch JE, Heymsfield SB, Boden-Albala B, Buijs RM, Kreier F, et al. Short sleep duration as a risk factor for hypertension: analyses of the first national health and nutrition examination survey. Hypertension. 2006;47:833–9.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  37. Pennestri MH, Montplaisir J, Colombo R, Lavigne G, Lanfranchi PA. Nocturnal blood pressure changes in patients with restless legs syndrome. Neurology. 2007;68:1213–8.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  38. Siddiqui F, Strus J, Ming X, Lee IA, Chokroverty S, et al. Rise of blood pressure with periodic limb movements in sleep and wakefulness. Clin Neurophysiol. 2007;118:1923–30.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  39. Walters AS, Rye DB. Review of the relationship of restless legs syndrome and periodic limb movements in sleep to hypertension, heart disease, and stroke. Sleep. 2009;32:589–97.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  40. Winkelman JW. The evoked heart rate response to periodic leg movements of sleep. Sleep. 1999;22:575–80.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  41. Davies RJ, Belt PJ, Roberts SJ, Ali NJ, Stradling JR. Arterial blood pressure responses to graded transient arousal from sleep in normal humans. J Appl Physiol. 1993;74:1123–30.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  42. Ekstedt M, Akerstedt T, Soderstrom M. Microarousals during sleep are associated with increased levels of lipids, cortisol, and blood pressure. Psychosom Med. 2004;66:925–31.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  43. Javaheri S. Sleep disorders in systolic heart failure: a prospective study of 100 male patients. The final report. Int J Cardiol. 2006;106:21–8.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  44. Skomro R, Silva R, Alves R, Figueiredo A, Lorenzi-Filho G. The prevalence and significance of periodic leg movements during sleep in patients with congestive heart failure. Sleep Breath. 2009;13:43–7.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  45. Kimmel PL, Miller G, Mendelson WB. Sleep apnea syndrome in chronic renal disease. Am J Med. 1989;86:308–14.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  46. Pressman MR, Benz RL, Schleifer CR, Peterson DD. Sleep disordered breathing in ESRD: acute beneficial effects of treatment with nasal continuous positive airway pressure. Kidney Int. 1993;43:1134–9.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  47. Lindner A, Fornadi K, Lazar AS, Czira ME, Dunai A, et al. Periodic limb movements in sleep are associated with stroke and cardiovascular risk factors in patients with renal failure. J Sleep Res. 2012;21:297–307.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Nutritional Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, 109 Chandlee lab, State College, PA, 16802, USA

    Xiang Gao

  2. Department of Neurology, Yale University School of Medicine, 15 York St., New Haven, CT, 06510, USA

    Brian Koo

Authors
  1. Xiang Gao
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Brian Koo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Xiang Gao .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Sleep and Epilepsy Center, Neurocenter of Southern Switzerland, Civic Hospital, Lugano, Switzerland

    Mauro Manconi

  2. Sleep Research Institute, Madrid, Spain

    Diego García-Borreguero

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2017 Springer Science+Business Media LLC

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Gao, X., Koo, B. (2017). Epidemiologic Evidence in Cardiovascular Disease. In: Manconi, M., García-Borreguero, D. (eds) Restless Legs Syndrome/Willis Ekbom Disease. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-6777-3_6

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-6777-3_6

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4939-6775-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4939-6777-3

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation