Company Press Release SOURCE: Restless Legs Syndrome Foundation http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/000329/mn_restles_1.html Prevalence of Restless Legs Syndrome May be Higher than Anticipated, Say Researchers from Stanford and Johns Hopkins Universities Restless Legs Syndrome Awareness Day Sheds Light on Debilitating Disease ROCHESTER, Minn., March 29, 2000 /PRNewswire/ -- Restless legs syndrome (RLS), a movement disorder that affects more than 12 million Americans, may be more prevalent than researchers once speculated. According to researchers from Stanford University and Johns Hopkins University who are working on a restless legs study in the U.S., over 15% of a medical patient population reported symptoms of RLS. Previous studies on the prevalence of RLS in the general population estimated this disorder to be present in only 3% to 10% of the population. "These exciting results demonstrate that in a standard medical practice there is a significant population of people who suffer from restless legs syndrome for whom effective treatment is available and can significantly improve both their sleep and their quality of life," said Richard Allen, M.D., of Johns Hopkins University, commenting on this important finding on Restless Legs Syndrome Awareness Day, March 29, 2000, during the National Sleep Foundation's National Sleep Awareness Week. Characterized by unpleasant leg sensations that occur usually while the affected individual is at rest, restless legs syndrome is described by patients as feeling like an "electrical current", "internal itch" or a "creeping or crawling" sensation. Symptoms worsen in severity from daytime to nighttime, at times making it difficult to sleep or causing the patient to wake up in the middle of the night. Complaints of chronic bedtime leg restlessness are highly prevalent. "Restless legs syndrome is a real disease that can impact quality of life for these patients," said Catherine F. Murray, Executive Director of the Restless Legs Syndrome Foundation, Rochester, MN. "Because of its name, restless legs syndrome may sound trivial, but it is a real and treatable disorder. Restless legs syndrome can have a devastating impact on quality of life for afflicted individuals -- affecting their ability to work, travel and engage in social activities while also affecting their family members." The ongoing study, a venture involving researchers from Stanford and Johns Hopkins Universities, was founded in the summer of 1999. The study is supported by the Restless Legs Syndrome Foundation. According to Dr. Allen, the goals of the study are to determine if the high prevalence of restless leg-type symptoms in the study population translates to a higher prevalence of RLS in the general population. In addition, the project is researching the severity and morbidity of RLS before and after treatment and developing a training module to prepare primary care physicians to recognize, accurately diagnose and treat RLS. "We believe that that to a large extent RLS and other sleep disorders can be treated through the family physician," said Dr. Allen. "By educating the family physician about RLS, a greater number of people who suffer with the disorder can be diagnosed and treated." Traditional drug therapies for restless legs syndrome include older dopaminergic agents such as levodopa, bromocriptine and pergolide, and benzodiazepines, opioids and anticonvulsants. These medications have varying degrees of effectiveness in relieving symptoms of RLS. Recent studies have revealed that the newer dopamine agonists used to treat Parkinson's disease, such as pramipexole (dihydrochloride tablets), are the most effective treatment options. A study presented last year at the Association of Professional Sleep Societies annual meeting showed that pramipexole had major therapeutic effects on sensory and motor manifestations of restless legs syndrome and alleviated restlessness at bedtime and during the night. Pramipexole is a second-generation dopamine agonist currently indicated for the treatment of early and late stage idiopathic Parkinson's disease. The FDA approved the medication (Mirapex®, pramipexole, dihydrochloride tablets) for use in Parkinson's disease in 1997. National Sleep Awareness Week (NSAW) is a public education campaign designed to show Americans the value of a good night's sleep and how to get it. This collaborative effort to bring greater attention to the importance of good sleep to health, productivity and safety, the consequences of lack of sleep and poor sleep and what can be done to improve sleep problems, is managed by the National Sleep Foundation. The National Sleep Foundation is an independent nonprofit organization that promotes public understanding of sleep and sleep disorders and supports sleep-related education, research and advocacy to improve public health and safety. During this week when the National Sleep Foundation is highlighting the importance of getting a good night's sleep, the Restless Legs Syndrome Foundation is taking the opportunity to raise awareness of one of the primary causes of sleep disturbance. The Restless Legs Syndrome Foundation, headquartered in Rochester, MN, is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) agency that provides information about RLS, publishes a quarterly newsletter known as NightWalkers, develops support groups and funds research to find better treatments and, eventually, a definitive cure. For more information about the Restless Legs Project or restless legs syndrome, please call the patient hotline at 1-877-INFO RLS or visit the foundation's web site at http://www.rls.org. 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