What Is Restless Leg Syndrome?
Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a neurological disorder. It is also know as Willis-Ekbom disease. It is neurologic in nature and is characterized with an urge which is uncontrollable to move one's body due to an unusual sensation or due to discomfort. It is termed restless leg syndrome as it tends to mostly affect the legs, however it can also affect other parts of the body, even phantom limbs can be included. Once the limb is moved then the sensation which is felt tends to go away alleviating the irritation. The sensation tend to start when someone is relaxing, most specifically related to sleep when someone is attempting to get to sleep. Thus it can be very disruptive to someones sleep and lead to insomnia. Additionally some limb jerking can also occur during sleep, which can also cause more poor sleep. Restless legs syndrome is characterised as a spectrum disease, this means that there is a wide variety of severity, going from some who thinks it is just a minor annoyance to someone who has a much poor quality of life, including major potential insomnia.