Clinical Significance of Restless Legs Syndrome in Patients with Late Life Depression

노년기 우울증 환자의 하지불안증후군의 임상적 중요성

  • Song, Jae Min (Department of Psychiatry, Jeju National University Hospital, School of Medicine, Jeju National University) ;
  • Park, Joon Hyuk (Department of Psychiatry, Jeju National University Hospital, School of Medicine, Jeju National University) ;
  • Kang, Ji Eon (Department of Psychiatry, Jeju YeonKang Hospital) ;
  • Lee, Chang In (Department of Psychiatry, Jeju National University Hospital, School of Medicine, Jeju National University)
  • 송재민 (제주대학교 의학전문대학원 제주대학교병원 정신건강의학교실) ;
  • 박준혁 (제주대학교 의학전문대학원 제주대학교병원 정신건강의학교실) ;
  • 강지언 (제주 연강병원 정신건강의학과) ;
  • 이창인 (제주대학교 의학전문대학원 제주대학교병원 정신건강의학교실)
  • Received : 2014.06.21
  • Accepted : 2014.07.24
  • Published : 2014.08.28

Abstract

Objectives Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a sleep disorder characterized by uncomfortable and unpleasant sensations in the legs and an urge to move the legs, usually at night. The aim of this study is to investigate the incidence of RLS in patients with late life depression and its influence on various clinical outcomes such as severity of depression, sleep quality, cognitive function, and quality of life and accordingly, to elucidate the clinical significance of RLS in patients with late life depression (LLD). Methods This study enlisted 170 depressive patients aged 65 years or older from an outpatient clinic. Structured diagnostic interviews were performed using the Korean version of the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview. All patients completed the questionnaires, including the International RLS Severity Scale, the Korean version of Short-Form 36-Item Health Survey (SF-36), and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). The severity of depression was evaluated by the Korean form of the Geriatric Depression Scale (KGDS) and the level of global cognition was assessed by the Mini-Mental State Examination in the Korean version of The Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Packet (MMSE-KC). Results The incidence of RLS was 17.6% in LLD patients. RLS was more prevalent among the subjects with major depressive disorder (MDD) than those with minor depressive disorder or subsyndromal depressive disorder. The RLS group showed higher score in the KGDS than the Non-RLS group but the difference did not reach the statistical significance (p = 0.095, Student t-test). The mean PSQI score was significantly higher in the RLS group than in the Non-RLS group (p = 0.001, Student t-test). The MMSE-KC score was also lower in the RLS group than in Non-RLS group (p = 0.009, analysis of covariance). But, there was no difference in the score of SF-36 between the RLS group and the Non-RLS group. Conclusions RLS is common in LLD patients, especially in the patients with MDD and is associated with poor sleep quality and cognitive dysfunction, indicating that RLS is clinically significant in patients with LLD. Therefore, RLS should be considered as an important clinical issue in the management of LLD.

Keywords

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