Periodic leg movements in sleep: effect of clonazepam treatment

Periodic leg movements in sleep were diagnosed in 8 patients with insomnia and in 12 patients with hypersomnia. Polysomnography did not reveal any difference in the number of leg movements in these groups, the mean duration of a leg movement, or the number of activity epochs. Those with insomnia, however, had a shorter intermovement interval than those with hypersomnia, with more leg movements in each activity epoch. Treatment with 0.5 to 2 mg clonazepam improved subjective complaints and decreased the number of leg movements without affecting the intermovement interval or movement duration.