Prevalence of restless legs syndrome in blood donors

Abstract

Iron deficiency anemia has been linked to restless legs syndrome (RLS) and regular blood donation may lead to iron deficiency. It has been reported that blood donations may be associated with RLS. A recent study from Sweden found that 25% of the women donors were affected by RLS. However, this type of study has not been replicated in the United States. We conducted a study in our blood donation unit between September and October 2008. To identify those with RLS, we used the RLS diagnostic index questionnaire by Benes et al. The proportion of blood donors with RLS was estimated and the number of blood donations and hemoglobin levels were compared according to RLS status. One hundred and fifty one patients were interviewed; 7 patients who donated only platelets were excluded, leaving 144 patients for analysis. There were 13 (9.0%, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 4.9-14.9%) patients with RLS. Of these, 7 (4.9%, 95% CI: 2.0-9.8%) had possible RLS and 6 (4.2%, 95% CI: 1.5-8.9%) had major or clinically relevant RLS. There was no dramatic association between RLS and number of blood donations or hemoglobin level (all P >or= 0.21). In our sample of blood donors in the United States, the prevalence of major RLS was 4%. We could not demonstrate an association between RLS and the frequency of blood donation or hemoglobin level in our relatively small sample; a larger sample is needed to better identify any associations.

Prevalence of restless legs syndrome in female blood donors 1 week after blood donation

“…Our study did not show any correlation between RLS and haemoglobin and ferritin levels or the number of previous blood donations, which was already demonstrated in previous studies . Recent studies suggested that intravenous iron treatment improves the symptoms of RLS in some patients .…”

“…As pointed out by the authors, the results were probably overestimated by methodological problems, although they used the same criteria as in our study. In a US study , the prevalence of RLS in blood donors from both sexes was 9%, with a distinction between possible RLS (5%) and definite RLS (4%). In our study, we also defined a possible RLS group that included the population who described an ‘urge to move the legs’ (first criterion) and not all three of the others.…”

“…A Swedish study showed a markedly increased prevalence of RLS among female blood donors (24·7%) and, according to a clinical trial carried out by the same group of researchers, administration of intravenous iron relieved these symptoms. However, the association with blood donation was not confirmed in an American study , which showed a similar prevalence of RLS in donors compared with the general population (9%). A recent study also showed a prevalence of RLS of 9% in donors .…”

Iron in Restless Legs Syndrome

“…A first line of evidence, that iron is of importance to the pathophysiology of RLS, stems from the observation that RLS occurs more frequently in individuals with compromised iron status than in the general population. Conditions such as, but not limited to, pregnancy, primary nutritional iron deficiency, and iron deficiency anemia, as well as—in some, but not all, populations—repeated blood donations are known to precipitate RLS.…”

“…Last, conditions that coincide with a large amount of blood loss—such as, for example, (repeated) blood donations or (in single cases) heart transplantation, therapeutic venesection, or recurrent uterine myomas (personal observation)—also seem to possess the ability to both trigger and aggravate RLS.…”