J Korean Neurol Assoc.
2009 Feb;27(1):49-53.
Is Antipsychotic Intake a Risk Factor for the Restless Legs Syndrome?
- Affiliations
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- 1Department of Neurology, Boramae Hospital, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
- 2Department of Psychiatry, Boramae Hospital, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea. hyjung@snu.ac.kr
Abstract
- BACKGROUND
Restless-legs syndrome (RLS) is known to be caused by dopaminergic hypofunction in the brain. We investigated whether antipsychotics that act as antidopaminergics increase the risk of RLS.
METHODS
We prospectively recruited 72 schizophrenic patients who had been medicated with antipsychotic drugs in a psychiatry clinic. We evaluated RLS diagnostic criteria and basic sleep habits using the Epworth Sleepiness Scale and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index by face-to-face interviews using a structured questionnaire. We also applied the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale to evaluate extrapyramidal symptoms.
RESULTS
Three of the 72 patients (4.2%) met RLS criteria, which is similar to the previously reported RLS incidence among the general population in Korea.
CONCLUSIONS
There is no evidence that antipsychotics increase the risk of RLS. We believe that the mild antidopaminergic effect of antipsychotics does not overwhelm their prominent antipsychotic effect.
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