Year: 2008
Type: dissertation
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: ABSTRACT \nThe two disorders of Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) and Periodic Limb Movements \n(PLM) are well recognised as fairly common neurological disorders. The presentation is \nof a sensory and motor component suggestive of a state of hyperexcitability of the \nnervous system. The underlying abnormality is believed to involve a dopamine \ndeficiency but many of characteristics of the disorders have not been adequately \ndescribed or quantified. I investigated, firstly, the possible reasons for the gender bias in \nthe prevalence studies and found that women were more likely to have some associated \nconditions which may be related to RLS as well as a higher symptom load when \ncompared to men subjects with RLS. I then looked at the problems of analysing the \nsensations occurring in RLS. Due to the lack of an adequate measuring tool and the \npossibility of a relationship between the sensations of RLS and those of pain, I used a \nvalidated descriptive pain questionnaire (the McGill pain questionnaire) to measure the \nsensations of RLS. Subjects with RLS were able to describe the sensations with the pain \nquestionnaire and severity indices calculated from the McGill correlated well with \nmeasures of RLS severity but not with other intensity measures for pain. In the area of \nmotor events I investigated the possibility of creating a classification system for the \nmuscle activations documented as PLM. I recorded multiple muscle groups in the legs \nduring sleep and devised a classification using sequence of activation and timing of \nactivations from the different muscles. I also used the classification to show subtle \nchanges in the leg activation patterns associated with change in sleep stage.
Author: Alison Bentley
Language: English
Subfield: Clinical Neurology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2222734908