Well Well Well,
Finally I know why I am having RLS. With my back injury and subsequent fibromyalgia I have been experiencing RLS on and off for the past 4 1/2 years. I am currently 21 weeks pregnant and recently have been increasingly suffering on a daily basis of very severe RLS.
Surprisingly enough my ante-natal blood test results showed an haemoglobin count of 102 indicating low stores etc. Commenced iron tablets and low and behold within 4 days the RLS had reduced to nearly nil episodes.................
An interesting point to keep in mind.
As an aside, personally I have found the following helpful with RLS episodes:
heat packs
a warm bath/shower
someone with a firm hand giving a thorough deep massage is very helpful (my son has become an expert in this.....) a hint for firm but not 'hard' pressure is to tell the person doing the massage to use the weight of their body to apply pressure rather than the hand or fingers themselves.
Rita
deliverywoman
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
This was one of the articles.
Restless Legs Syndrome Common Among Pregnant Women
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) Sept 27 - During pregnancy, one in four women will
experience restless legs syndrome (RLS), Italian researchers report.
The current study is not the first to make a connection between RLS and
pregnancy. However, it is the first to use the four diagnostic criteria set
forth by the International RLS Study Group in 1995: desire to move the legs
usually associated with paresthesias or dysesthesias, motor restlessness,
worsening of symptoms with rest/inactivity, and worsening symptoms at night.
The findings, which appear in the September 28th issue of Neurology, are
based on a study of 642 pregnant women who were evaluated for RLS using the
recently introduced criteria.
Twenty-six percent of women had RLS at some point during their pre! gnancy,
lead author Dr. Mauro Manconi, from Vita-Salute University in Milan, and
colleagues note. The percentage of women with RLS rose dramatically during
the third trimester, and most of the cases resolved around the time of
delivery.
The only risk factor for developing RLS during pregnancy was a low
hemoglobin level, the investigators report.
"Our results on a significant difference in iron storage indicators support
a hypothesis that a relative iron deficit could play a role" in RLS, Dr.
Manconi said in a statement. However, he said, "the rapid improvement of RLS
symptoms after delivery give more power to a hormonal rather than
iron-related hypothesis."
Neurology 2004;63:1065-1069.
Related Links
Resource Centers
Movement Disorders
Pregnancy
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Leanne Wynne
Midwife in charge of ! "Women's Business"
Mildura Aboriginal Health Service Mob 0418 371862
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