If doctor doubt that one has RLS, he or she may prescribe certain medicines used for the treatment of Parkinson disease to relieve RLS symptoms. If the symptoms are relieving by this medication, then doctor may confirm RLS.

How do you treat RLS?

There is no cure for Restless legs syndrome (RLS). If the causes of RLS are due to any condition or medicine, then it may go away if this causing factor is relieved or stopped.

Goals of RLS treatment are to:

• Relieve from the symptoms
• Increase the quantity and quality of sleep
• Treat any underlying condition that causes or may worsen RLS
• Mild cases of RLS can be relieved by lifestyle changes and sometimes with medication. Severe cases of RLS can treat with daily medication.

Lifestyle guidelines or home remedies for RLS

Lifestyle guidelines can provide relief from the symptoms of mild cases of RLS.

• Alcohol and tobacco can induce RLS symptoms, avoiding these can limit or stop symptoms.
• Some medications can cause or worsen RLS symptoms, stopping or changing these medications can relieve symptoms.
• Following sleep hygiene (habits) can help fall asleep and stay asleep. Some of these good sleep habits (hygiene) includes:
  • Keep the bedroom cool, quiet, comfortable, and dark enough.
  • Remove sleep disturbing things, such as a TV, computer, or phone.
  • Maintain a definite time for going to bed and wake up, this helps our internal clock (our body’s internal clock) to maintain require hormonal secretion and maintain a proper sleep cycle.
  • Avoid a stay in bed awake to a long period during the night.
  • Some breathing exercise and relaxation techniques may help to fall asleep easily.
  • Regular, moderate physical activity helps to limit or stop these symptoms; it is often confirming by people with RLS.

Some other activities that relieve these symptoms are:

• Walking or stretching
• Hot or cold bathing
• Massaging or heat/ice packs on the affected limb
• Doing some mentally challenging tasks, such as cross word or chess.
• Select an aisle seat in movies or during travel can help to move around.

Primary care doctors can be able to diagnose and treat RLS. However, he or she also sometimes may suggest consulting a sleep specialist or neurologist for efficient treatment.

Restless legs syndrome test

• Symptoms - Must have all key signs and symptoms of RLS to be diagnose with this condition.
• Other health conditions - some disease condition can cause RLS such as kidney failure, Parkinson disease, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, pregnancy, and iron deficiency.
• Ongoing medications - Some medications can cause or worsen RLS.
• Family history - RLS tends to run in families, if any of the family members have had RLS, then the chances of having it is more.
• Physical exam – is to check for conditions that may cause RLS, just to eliminate other conditions that may be similar to it.
• Blood test - is to diagnose iron deficiency, muscle or nerve test to diagnose neurological problems.

Sometimes doctor may also like to know:

• How symptoms are affecting the quality and quantity of sleep?
• How alert during the day.

Keep a sleep diary with daily record of when going to bed, how easily fall asleep, how much sleep gets at the night, how alert during the day.

Rarely, doctor may suggest a sleep study for the diagnosis of RLS.

Most common symptoms of restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a strong urge to move legs with unpleasant feeling.

RLS Symptoms

• A stronger urge to move the legs, this urge often (not always) occurs with unpleasant feelings in the legs. Severe cases may have the urge to move arms too. These unpleasant feelings are tingling, creeping, crawling, pulling, itching, aching, burning, or electric shocks.
• Symptoms begin or worsen during rest, sitting ideal, lying down or inactive.
• Symptoms of unpleased feeling are relieved from movement especially walking.
• Symptoms are starts or worsen in the evening or night.

One must have all these signs and symptoms to diagnose as RLS.

Restless legs syndrome (RLS) gets its name from the urge to move the legs. Typical movements that relieve the symptoms are:

• Pacing - walking with slow regular strides
• Jiggling - move or rock lightly up and down or back and forth in an unsteady, jerky manner.
• Stretch, bend, deform, twist and turn
• Rubbing the legs

Children may describe RLS symptoms in a different way than adults, so they are sometime misdiagnosing as ADHD (Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder).

The RLS symptom of unpleasant feelings often occurs in the lower legs. However, it can also occur at any place in the legs or feet or arms.

People with mild symptoms may not notice it until the symptoms occur during awake to a long time, such as lengthy trip or watching TV.

RLS should not confuse with leg cramps at night; leg cramps are limited to certain muscle groups with feeling tight also, and it causes more severe pain and requires continuous stretching of the affected muscle for some time to get relief.

In addition, RLS should not confuse with arthritis or peripheral arterial disease (PAD) that causes pain or discomfort in the legs. However, the movement tends to worsen the discomfort instead of relief.

RLS symptoms make it difficult to fall or stay asleep, so does not get enough good-quality sleep. Thus, feel very tired during the day and problem concentrating at school or work. Sleep dept also can cause depression, mood swings, or other health conditions such as diabetes or high blood pressure.

Certain factors (such as genetics, gender, age and many more) contribute for the causes of restless leg syndrome, and it is called as risk factors of RLS.

RLS risk-factors

• Genetic - More than half of the people with RLS have family members with this condition.
• Gender - women are more likely to have it than men are.
• Age - cases of RLS increases with age. Many diagnose as RLS in their middle age; however, 40 % of RLS cases start before 20 years. People with RLS early in their life usually have a family history of RLS.
• Other health conditions - certain diseases/conditions or medications have more chances to develop RLS.
• Pregnancy - RLS is common in pregnant-women usually develops during the last three months of pregnancy. Mostly, the symptom improves or disappears after giving birth. However, some may continue to have it after giving birth.

Causes of restless leg syndrome in most patients are unknown. However, it is associated with pregnancy, obesity, smoking, anemia, nerve disease, and many more.

Causes of Restless legs syndrome

• Iron deficiency or improper utilization – many research findings suggest that restless legs syndrome (RLS) is mostly due to the iron deficiency in brain. The brain makes dopamine-using iron, a chemical that controls other brain activities, particularly part of brain that control movement.
• A number of medical conditions can develop RLS these conditions include kidney failure, Parkinson disease, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, pregnancy, and iron deficiency.
• Family history - People whose family members have had RLS are more likely to develop it. Thus, genetics may contribute to the improper utilization or lack of iron in the brain that causes RLS.
• Nerve Damage - in the legs/feet or sometimes in the arms/hands may cause or worsen RLS. Other conditions that can cause nerve damage, including diabetes.
• Medication - that may cause RLS, include Antinausea medicines (for stomach upset treatment), Antidepressants, Antipsychotics (for mental health disorders), Antihistamines (for Cold and allergy), and Calcium channel blockers (for heart problems and high blood pressure). RLS symptoms usually get better or may even disappear if the medication is stop that causes RLS.
• Alcohol and tobacco can also cause or worsen RLS symptoms. Symptoms may be relieved or disappear once these substances are stopped.

If sleep apnea is untreated, then it can lead to many medical complications such as hypertension, heart attack, stroke, diabetes and many more.

What are the sleep-apnea effects?

• It increases the chances of developing high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke, obesity, and diabetes
• It increases the risk for or worsens heart failure
• Causes irregular heartbeats
• It increases the chances of having an accident at work places or during driving.
• Frequent oxygen levels drops and reduced sleep quality induce the release of stress hormones. It raises heart rate and increases the risk for high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke, and irregular heartbeats. It also raises the risk for or worsens heart failure.

Untreated sleep apnea can change the way the body uses energy, and it increases the risk for obesity and diabetes.

Lifestyle modification, mouthpieces, surgery, and/or breathing devices can successfully treat sleep apnea in many people.

Sleep apnea is a difficult medical condition to manage, but following certain preplanned things helps to manage it successfully.

Living with sleep apnea

• Obstructive sleep apnea can be very serious, still following an effective treatment plan can improve the quality of life.
• Treatment can improve the sleep quality and relieve daytime tiredness. It also may reduce the chances to develop high blood pressure, heart disease, and other health conditions linked to sleeping apnea.
• Continuous health care needs – keep visiting doctor regularly to make sure the treatment is working. Tell him/her, if there is any treatment side effect that cannot handle.

The consistent care is especially important if getting continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment. It may take some time to get to adjust to using CPAP. Discuss with the doctor, how comfortable is the CPAP machine or whether it produces the expecting result or producing certain unwanted side effects? Based on this discussion doctor may advise to switch to a different device or mask or treatment to relieve side effects.

Weight gain can worsen sleep apnea and require some adjustments to CPAP device. In contrast, weight loss may relieve sleep apnea symptoms.

It is better to avoid driving or operating heavy machinery while sleepy. If have any surgery that requires medication to put on sleep, tell the surgeon and doctors that you are a sleep apnea patient. They might take some extra steps to make sure the airway stays open during the surgery.

Sleep apnea patient needs family support

Mostly, patient with sleep apnea do not know they have it. In addition, they are not aware that their breathing stops and starts many times while sleeping. Family members or bed partners are the first who noticed the signs of sleep apnea.

• Encourage and provide moral support to the patient to get medical help.
• Help the patient to follow the treatment plan, including CPAP.
• Provide emotional support.

Some patients with moderate or severe sleep apnea may get the benefit with the surgery. The type of surgery and the result it produces are depending on the sleep apnea cause.

Goal of sleep apnea surgery

The main goal of sleep apnea surgery is to widen the airway to stop blocking it during sleep. Surgery for widening breath passages include shrinking, removing, or stiffening the excess tissue in the mouth and throat or resetting the lower jaw. It is performing in doctor’s office or in a hospital.

• Tissue shrinking is by small shots or other treatments to the tissue. Effective results need a series of such treatments for proper shrinking.
• Stiffening the tissue is by making small cut in the tissue and stiffens it by inserting a plastic.
• Surgery to remove excess tissue is in a hospital and after surgery; there may be throat pain that lasts for one to two weeks.
• Surgery to remove the tonsils, if it blocks the airway, may be mostly helpful for some children. Child's doctor may suggest wait for some time to see whether these tissues shrink on its own. This is common as small children grow.

Breathing device (Continuous positive airway pressure) is the most common treatment for moderate to severe sleep apnea in adults.

What is CPAP?

A CPAP machine uses a mask that fits over the nose and/or mouth. The machine gently supplies air pressure into the throat on the walls of the airway. This air pressure can adjust so that it is enough to keep the airways open without narrowed or blocked during sleep.

How do you set up CPAP machine?

A technician will come home with a new CPAP machine. The technician will set up the CPAP machine and adjust it based on doctor's advice. After this initial setup, it may be needed some adjustment on occasion for the best results.

Side effects of CPAP equipment

CPAP therapy may cause some side effects that include:

• dry or stuffy nose,
• irritated skin on the face,
• sore eyes,
• headaches

If CPAP is not in proper adjustment, it may cause stomach bloating and discomfort or pain while wearing the mask.

If having trouble with CPAP side effects, discuss with sleep specialist/nursing staff and the CPAP technician. Together, take necessary steps to reduce these side effects. These modification steps include adjusting the CPAP settings or the mask size, or by adding moisture to the air. A nasal spray may help to relieve a dry, stuffy, or runny nose.

Patient who had severe sleep apnea symptoms generally feel much relieved from symptoms once they begin CPAP treatment.

Goal of sleep apnea treatment is to restore normal sleep; some of the common sleep apnea treatments are following sleep apnea guidelines, using CPAP machine during sleep and surgery.

Sleep apnea home remedies

The goals of Sleep apnea Home Remedies are:

• Restore normal breathing during sleep
• Relieve loud snoring and daytime sleepiness
• Treatment may help other medical conditions linked to sleeping apnea, such as high blood pressure. In addition, it reduces the risks for heart disease, stroke, and diabetes.

Common sleep apnea treatments

Lifestyle guidelines, mouthpieces, breathing devices, and/or surgeries are useful for the treatment of sleep apnea. Currently, there is no medication for the treatment of sleep apnea.

Lifestyle guidelines and/or mouthpieces may be sufficient to relieve mild sleep apnea. Patient who had moderate or severe sleep apnea will need breathing devices or surgery.

Sleep apnea lifestyles guidelines

• Avoid alcohol and medications that make sleepy. They make it difficult for the throat to stay open while sleeping.
• Lose a little weight if overweight or obese can help improve the symptoms.
• Sleep with your sides instead of back to help keeps the throat open. Use specially designed pillow or shirt that prevents from sleeping on the back.
• Make the nasal passages open at night with nose sprays or allergy medication if necessary.
• Stop smoking.
• Mouthpiece - also called an oral appliance, may help some people with mild sleep apnea. Doctor may recommend a mouthpiece if snore loudly but do not have sleep apnea.
• A dentist or orthodontist can design an individualized plastic mouthpiece for treating sleep apnea. The mouthpiece will adjust the lower jaw and tongue to help keep the airways open while sleeping. If use a mouthpiece, check with the doctor if discomfort or pain while using the device.