(Topix) Last Super Bowl, a TV commercial lauded the power of Requip , the first drug approved to treat restless leg syndrome, a condition whose signature feature is creepy-crawly leg sensations that interfere with ...Comment

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Doc,
I have had severe RLS and PLM for as long as I can remember. Once I found a sleep disorder clinic I went through many drugs, alone and in combination to allow me to even lay down at night.
Before Requip was FDA approved for RLS my doc put me on it in combination with Klonipin. Requip alone has an extremely good outcome for many.
What a miracle!!!!!!!!! I take my meds one hour prior to bedtime and off I go to dreamland. I still move my legs a lot but there is no pain or waking up because of it.
Thank God for modern medicine. Standing up to sleep is something that some animals do........... not humans.
Judy

can help many with cramping/twitching or restless legs.

Potent dopamine agonists? YIKES...upset your whole system!
Many side effects, etc.

See my magnesium thread in Vitamin forum for details.

I have RLS.
Actually that article is quite interesting from my point of view. Apart from the fact that it references some of Roger Kurlan's work, I find it interesting for a few other reasons. Kurlan is a member of the Tourette Syndrome Association Medical Advisory Board. The acticle referenced speaks about 2 patients who found that they developed tolerance or declining response to the medications and suggestions about improving that. (as an aside, I see that Kurlan has also written a paper regarding "dopamine phobia" in patients who have Parkinson's Disease.)

I've personally never taken any pharmaceutical medications for my RLS although I can assure you that I've been tempted at times when I've wanted to jump of a cliff to stop the edginess and restlessness, and I mean that quite seriouslly. Because it sounds like a fairly painless syndrome because of the name, it's actually something quite dreadful and I have much empathy for anyone who has this problem.

I have a few minor motor tics. One major observation that I've found over the years since my childhood has been that my RLS is much worse at the times when I have no tics, and visa versa. Obviously related to dopamine dysregulation, but I'd hate to think what would happen if I started using a dopamine agonist for RLS or even a dopamine antagonist for the tics, although that wouldn't happen.

I have also noticed in the past few years though, that some doctors have treated patients who have debilitating tics with some low dose dopamine agonists although it isn't that common a practice.

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releas...-ttt122006.php

hubby has both rls and plmd. ( periodic limb movement disorder)
our dr gave him an rx for requip. he didn't fill it.

my dad who has pd had horrible horrible experiences with it. it might work for some, but i can't reccomend it.

Hi Curious! still going here.

http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/lin....00368.x/full/

Journal of Sleep Research
Volume 12 Issue 4 Page 343 - December 2003
doi:10.1046/j.0962-1105.2003.00368.x
Volume 12 Issue 4

Letter to the Editor
A preliminary look at the percentage of patients with Restless Legs Syndrome who also have Parkinson Disease, Essential Tremor or Tourette Syndrome in a single practice

Arthur S. Walters, Cheryl LeBrocq, Vandna Passi, Shivani Patel, Philip A. Hanna, Barry Cohen4 and Mary Wagner
_______

Lipinski, J. F., Sallee, F. R., Jackson, C. and Sethuraman, G. Dopamine agonist treatment of Tourette disorder in children: results of an open-label trial of pergolide. Mov. Disord., 1997, 12: 402–407.
_______

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q...02&query_hl=18
Mov Disord. 2004 Sep;19(9):1084-7.
Restless legs in Tourette syndrome.

Lesperance P, Djerroud N, Diaz Anzaldua A, Rouleau GA, Chouinard S, Richer F; Montreal Tourette Study Group.

Centre Hospitalier de l'Universite de Montreal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
_________

plenty more I have, but much of it is ADHD and/or TS with RLS stuff so not particularly related to original topic.

Anyone interested though might also look into the work of Drs. AS Walters and D Picchietti in PubMed. Also worth looking into the ferritin studies.

Curious,
I am sorry that the medication didn't work for your dad. It is no fun to live with the pain and discomfort. There are many meds out there and sometimes they need to be in combination. I hope he finds relief.
I don't know what I would do if I had to go back to the sleepless nights.
Judy

I was diagnosed with PLMD during my first sleep study. They recommended Mirapex which did nothing for me. Then we tried klonopin which we changed, when on it I felt paralyzed and felt that I was awake all night. That was a scary time for me!

Finally my Doctor gave me Sinement (Carbidopa/Levodopa) and that fixed it. The really odd thing is that it took a while to get used to it. Waking up in the night was a hard thing to do as it seemed I had a screaming siren in the middle of my brain. That's lessened some today, but it seems to be still effective after about 4 years.

The one thing I have noticed is my legs sometimes feel 'itchy' so I'm beginning to think that I'm moving toward RLS that I didn't have before the Sinemet. I wonder if it's common to go from PLMD to RLS/PLMD?

I'm not sure if these treatments would last all night, but I've read individual recommendations of magnesium, hops, niacin with Vitamin C. One man used to say he drank an O'Doul's about an hour before bed for his, another ate Fava Beans. I can't remember the name of that email list, but I think it became or is tied to wemove.org (sp?). I'll have to start trying some of these.

I was talking to my new P-DR. about my diagnosis ---RLS, PLM, REM problems...and he said that RLS and PLM was the same?

Requip has helped tremendously -- but now having to increase it --- throw in a side dish of Fibromyalgia and uggghh!

But the Requip has been good --- if you haven't tried it for the above symptoms, please do so.