Prevalence of Periodic Leg Movements in Patients at a Sleep Center

Abstract

Objective:This study aimed to determine the prevalence of periodic leg movements (PLMs) in patients who underwent polysomnographic examinations and to compare the demographic and polysomnographic characteristics of patients with and without PLM.Materials and Methods:The demographic features and polysomnographic parameters of 491 patients were recorded. The patients were divided into two groups: PLMI ≤15 and >15. Patients with PLMI >15 and ≤15 and were defined as those with and without PLMI, respectively. All patients were grouped based on their sex and age.Results:Fifty-nine patients (12 men and 35 women) had PLMI >15. The age of the patients with PLM was significantly higher than that of those without PLM (p=0.05). When the groups were examined based on sex, in men, total sleep time (TST) in the non- PLM group and sleep time and sleep latency after sleep onset in the PLM group were significantly prolonged (p<0.05). Meanwhile, in women, only TST in the non-PLM group was significantly increased.Conclusion:PLM is a sleep-related movement disorder that is often unnoticeable by patients but may cause fatal consequences, leading to cardiovascular or cerebrovascular events. Further studies are needed to better understand the clinical significance of this disease, which is diagnosed by polysomnography.

Keywords

• periodic leg movement
• prevalence
• polysomnography