What Causes Restless Leg Syndrome?

Diabetes

Diabetes patients also have an increased risk of restless leg syndrome. In a 2014 study, researchers compared 140 diabetes patients to a matched control group. They found 28.6 percent of the diabetic patients had restless leg syndrome, while only 7.1 percent of the control group had the condition. "[A] higher percentage of people with diabetes may have RLS, which can be worsened by peripheral neuropathy or nerve damage caused by uncontrolled blood sugars," explained Health and science writer Ilene Rush.

Poor sleep quality is another influence a diabetic condition may have on restless leg syndrome. Experts believe the hindered metabolizing of glucose in the diabetic's body interrupts sleep patterns. Researchers have discovered an association with restless leg syndrome and sleep disorders, such as apnea and periodic limb movement disorder.

Polyneuropathy

This is another condition associated with an increased risk of restless leg syndrome. An individual with this ailment suffers damage to the peripheral nervous system of the body, often caused by a disease like diabetes or Guillain-Barre syndrome. Researchers have found individuals with this condition have from 5.2 to fifty-four percent greater occurrence of restless leg syndrome than the general population.

A study published in 1991 theorized the connection between polyneuropathy and restless leg syndrome is the entrapment of diseased nerves, which may become twice as large as healthy nerve fibers. Researchers in 2015 tested this hypothesis by examining forty-two patients who had surgical decompression of the superficial fibular nerves to treat peripheral neuropathy. All the patients reported a reduction in their restless leg syndrome symptoms.