Restless legs syndrome: diagnostic criteria, special considerations, and epidemiology: A report from the restless legs syndrome diagnosis and epidemiology workshop at the National Institutes of Health

Allen, Richard P; Picchietti, Daniel; Hening, Wayne A; Trenkwalder, Claudia; Walters, Arthur S; Montplaisi, Jacques; the participants in the Restless Legs Syndrome Diagnosis and Epidemiology workshop at the National Institutes of Health in collaboration with members of the International Restless Legs Syndrome Study Group,

doi:10.1016/S1389-9457(03)00010-8

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Volume 4, Issue 2 , Pages 101-119, March 2003

Restless legs syndrome: diagnostic criteria, special considerations, and epidemiology:

A report from the restless legs syndrome diagnosis and epidemiology workshop at the National Institutes of Health

Richard P Allen
- Department of Neurology, Sleep Medicine, Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center, Asthma and Allergy Building 1B46b, 5501 Hopkins Bayview Circle, Baltimore, MD 21224, USA
- Corresponding author. Tel.: +1-410-550-2609; fax: +1-410-550-3364 (for reprints, contact the Restless Legs Syndrome Foundation, 819 Second Street SW, Rochester, MN 55902, USA. Tel.: +1-507-287-6465; fax: +1-507-287-6312. E-mail: rlsfoundation@rls.org)
Daniel Picchietti
- Carle Clinic Association and University of Illinois, Urbana, IL, USA
Wayne A Hening
- UMDNJ-R.W. Johnson Medical School, Piscataway, NJ, USA
Claudia Trenkwalder
- University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
Arthur S Walters
- New Jersey Neuroscience Institute, Edison, NJ, USA
Jacques Montplaisi
- Hôpital du Sacre-Coeur de Montreal, Montreal, QC, Canada
the participants in the Restless Legs Syndrome Diagnosis and Epidemiology workshop at the National Institutes of Health in collaboration with members of the International Restless Legs Syndrome Study Group

Received 12 November 2002; received in revised form 7 January 2003; accepted 9 January 2003.

Abstract

Background: Restless legs syndrome is a common yet frequently undiagnosed sensorimotor disorder. In 1995, the International Restless Legs Syndrome Study Group developed standardized criteria for the diagnosis of restless legs syndrome. Since that time, additional scientific scrutiny and clinical experience have led to a better understanding of the condition. Modification of the criteria is now necessary to better reflect that increased body of knowledge, as well as to clarify slight confusion with the wording of the original criteria.

Setting: The restless legs syndrome diagnostic criteria and epidemiology workshop at the National Institutes of Health.

Participants: Members of the International Restless Legs Syndrome Study Group and authorities on epidemiology and the design of questionnaires and scales.

Objective: To modify the current criteria for the diagnosis of restless legs syndrome, to develop new criteria for the diagnosis of restless legs syndrome in the cognitively impaired elderly and in children, to create standardized criteria for the identification of augmentation, and to establish consistent questions for use in epidemiology studies.

Results: The essential diagnostic criteria for restless legs syndrome were developed and approved by workshop participants and the executive committee of the International Restless Legs Syndrome Study Group. Criteria were also developed and approved for the additional aforementioned groups.

Keywords: Movement disorder, Sleep disorder, Neurologic disorder, Sleep, Consensus, Periodic limb movements of sleep, Periodic limb movement disorder