[Restless legs syndrome and periodic limb movements in sleep]

Restless legs syndrome is one of the most common neurological disorders, with a prevalence of 2% to 9% in the elderly population. Sensory and motor symptoms of the legs and an urge to move that occur at rest may lead to severe sleep disturbances and are part of the syndrome. Typical history and normal neurological examination lead to the clinical diagnosis. Additional laboratory and neurophysiological investigations are necessary to rule out associated diseases. The indication for polysomnography to record periodic limb movements in sleep must be discussed in individual cases. Treatment strategies will be recommended individually according to the disease severity. In this article we present an overview of the clinical symptomatology and include recommendations on diagnosis and treatment of RLS and differentiation of RLS from periodic limb movement disorder. To this purpose, the Motor System and Sleep Work Group of the German Society of Sleep Medicine presents modified guidelines for diagnosis and treatment of RLS according to recent recommendations of the American Sleep Disorder Association.