Restless Legs Syndrome and Morningness-Eveningness in the Korean High-School Students

Abstract

Background and Objective Restless legs syndrome (RLS) lowers the quality of sleep, and is characterized by symptoms that follow a circadian pattern. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between RLS and morning-eveningness in Korean adolescents. Methods Of the 867 community-dwelling high school students, 590 subjects were included in this study. All participants completed self-report questionnaires, including demographic variables, particulars about menstruation, life style, sleep duration, RLS severity, Composite Scale, Epworth Sleepiness Scale, Insomnia Severity Scale, Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Pittsburgh sleep quality index and Berlin Questionnaire. Results Participants with RLS symptoms had a higher prevalence of depression, defined by a PHQ-9 score ≥ 10 (OR 3.03, CI 1.11–8.26) and eveningness in chronotype (odds ratio 1.95 confidence interval 1.15–6.43) when adjusted for depression, excessive daytime sleepiness, insomnia symptom and morningness-eveningness. However, RLS symptoms had no association with excessive daytime sleepiness and insomnia, when adjusted for clinical factors. Conclusion sIn Korean high school students, restless leg symptom may be preceded by depression and eveningness of chronotype. For healthy sleep lifestyle in the adolescents, an appropriate evaluation of RLS symptom as well as chronotype is recommended.

Keywords

• Chronotype
• Morningness-eveningness
• Depression
• Adolescent
• Restless legs syndrome