SpringerLink
Log in

Prevalence of restless legs syndrome in individuals with migraine: a systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Neurological Sciences Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Objective

Recent studies have shown an association between migraine and restless legs syndrome (RLS), but RLS prevalence among individuals with migraine differs substantially across studies. The present work aimed to comprehensively assess available evidence to estimate RLS prevalence among individuals with migraine and non-migraine controls.

Method

Web of Science, PubMed, Embase, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang, and SinoMed databases were searched for observational and case-control studies of RLS prevalence among individuals with migraine. Eligible studies were meta-analyzed using Stata 12.0 software.

Results

Pooled RLS prevalence in migraine was 19%, and the prevalence was lower in Asia (16%) than outside Asia (21%). Pooled RLS prevalence was 18.8% among individuals with migraine with aura, and 18.5% among individuals with migraine without aura; the RLS prevalence in migraine with aura (MA) was higher than that of migraine without aura (MO) (OR 1.17, 95%CI 1.01–1.34; p = 0.037). Pooled RLS prevalence in a case-control study was significantly higher among individuals with migraine (17.9%) than among non-migraine controls (7.1%) (OR 2.65, 95%CI 2.26–3.10; p < 0.001).

Conclusion

Our meta-analysis provides the first reliable pooled estimate of RLS prevalence among individuals with migraine, and it provides strong evidence that RLS risk is higher among individuals with migraine than among controls.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
EUR 32.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or Ebook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Price includes VAT (France)

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Headache Classification Subcommittee of the International Headache S. The International Classification of Headache Disorders: 2nd edition. Cephalalgia. 2004;24 Suppl 1:9–160

  2. Drake ME Jr, Pakalnis A, Andrews JM, Bogner JE (1990) Nocturnal sleep recording with cassette EEG in chronic headaches. Headache 30(9):600–603

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Della Marca G, Vollono C, Rubino M, Di Trapani G, Mariotti P, Tonali PA (2006) Dysfunction of arousal systems in sleep-related migraine without aura. Cephalalgia 26(7):857–864

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Young WB, Piovesan EJ, Biglan KM (2003) Restless legs syndrome and drug-induced akathisia in headache patients. CNS Spectr 8(6):450–456

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Bigal ME, Lipton RB (2009) The epidemiology, burden, and comorbidities of migraine. Neurol Clin 27(2):321–334

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Leonardi M, Steiner TJ, Scher AT, Lipton RB (2005) The global burden of migraine: measuring disability in headache disorders with WHO’s Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF). J Headache Pain 6(6):429–440

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Abstracts of the 15th Congress of the International Headache Society. June 23–26, 2011. Berlin, Germany. Cephalalgia. 2011;31(1 Suppl):1–242

  8. Chen PK, Fuh JL, Chen SP, Wang SJ (2010) Association between restless legs syndrome and migraine. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 81(5):524–528

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Cho SJ, Chung YK, Kim JM, Chu MK (2015) Migraine and restless legs syndrome are associated in adults under age fifty but not in adults over fifty: a population-based study. J Headache Pain 16:554

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Chung PW, Cho SJ, Kim WJ, Yang KI, Yun CH, Chu MK (2017) Restless legs syndrome and tension-type headache: a population-based study. J Headache Pain 18(1):47

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Cologno D, Cicarelli G, Petretta V, d’Onofrio F, Bussone G (2008) High prevalence of dopaminergic premonitory symptoms in migraine patients with restless legs syndrome: a pathogenetic link? Neurol Sci 29(Suppl 1):S166–S168

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. d’Onofrio F, Bussone G, Cologno D, Petretta V, Buzzi MG, Tedeschi G et al (2008) Restless legs syndrome and primary headaches: a clinical study. Neurol Sci 29(Suppl 1):S169–S172

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. d’Onofrio F, Cologno D, Petretta V, Finocchi C, Autunno M, Marsala G et al (2011) Restless legs syndrome is not associated with migraine with aura: a clinical study. Neurol Sci 32(Suppl 1):S153–S156

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Ferreira KS, Eckeli A, Dach F, Speciali JG (2013) Comorbidities, medications and depressive symptoms in patients with restless legs syndrome and migraine. Arq Neuropsiquiatr 71(2):87–91

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Karthik N, Kulkarni GB, Taly AB, Rao S, Sinha S (2012) Sleep disturbances in ‘migraine without aura’--a questionnaire based study. J Neurol Sci 321(1–2):73–76

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Lin GY, Lin YK, Lee JT, Lee MS, Lin CC, Tsai CK, Ting CH, Yang FC (2016) Prevalence of restless legs syndrome in migraine patients with and without aura: a cross-sectional, case-controlled study. J Headache Pain 17(1):97

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Lucchesi C, Bonanni E, Maestri M, Siciliano G, Murri L, Gori S (2012) Evidence of increased restless legs syndrome occurrence in chronic and highly disabling migraine. Funct Neurol 27(2):91–94

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  18. Rhode AM, Hosing VG, Happe S, Biehl K, Young P, Evers S (2007) Comorbidity of migraine and restless legs syndrome--a case-control study. Cephalalgia 27(11):1255–1260

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Seidel S, Bock A, Schlegel W, Kilic A, Wagner G, Gelbmann G et al (2012) Increased RLS prevalence in children and adolescents with migraine: a case-control study. Cephalalgia 32(9):693–699

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Sevindik MS, Demirci S, Goksan B, Ozge A, Savrun FK, Onur H et al (2017) Accompanying migrainous features in pediatric migraine patients with restless legs syndrome. Neurol Sci 38(9):1677–1681

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Suzuki S, Suzuki K, Miyamoto M, Miyamoto T, Watanabe Y, Takashima R, Hirata K (2011) Evaluation of contributing factors to restless legs syndrome in migraine patients. J Neurol 258(11):2026–2035

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Valente M, Janes F, Russo V, Fontana A, Travanut A, Sommaro M, Canal G, Gentile C, Luigi Gigli G (2017) Prevalence of restless legs syndrome in migraine patients: a case-control study. Analysis of risk factors for restless legs syndrome in migraine patients. Headache 57(7):1088–1095

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. van Oosterhout WP, van Someren EJ, Louter MA, Schoonman GG, Lammers GJ, Rijsman RM et al (2016) Restless legs syndrome in migraine patients: prevalence and severity. Eur J Neurol 23(6):1110–1116

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Pratt DP (2016) Restless legs syndrome/Willis-Ekbom disease and periodic limb movements: a comprehensive review of epidemiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis and treatment considerations. Curr Rheumatol Rev 12(2):91–112

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. Fernandez-Matarrubia M, Cuadrado ML, Sanchez-Barros CM, Martinez-Orozco FJ, Fernandez-Perez C, Villalibre I et al (2014) Prevalence of migraine in patients with restless legs syndrome: a case-control study. Headache 54(8):1337–1346

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Allen RP, Picchietti D, Hening WA, Trenkwalder C, Walters AS, Montplaisi J, Restless Legs Syndrome Diagnosis and Epidemiology workshop at the National Institutes of Health, International Restless Legs Syndrome Study Group (2003) Restless legs syndrome: diagnostic criteria, special considerations, and epidemiology. A report from the restless legs syndrome diagnosis and epidemiology workshop at the National Institutes of Health. Sleep Med 4(2):101–119

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Higgins JP, Thompson SG, Deeks JJ, Altman DG (2003) Measuring inconsistency in meta-analyses. BMJ 327(7414):557–560

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Zhang TS, Zhong WZ (2012) Applied methodology for evidence-based medicine. University Press, Changsha, pp 166–75

  29. Egger M, Smith GD, Phillips AN (1997) Meta-analysis: principles and procedures. BMJ 315(7121):1533–1537

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  30. De Martino P, Peila E, Rainero I et al (2012) Migraine and restless legs syndrome: further investigating the link. Neurology 78(Suppl):04249

    Google Scholar 

  31. Muayqil T, Al-Jafen BN, Al-Saaran Z, Al-Shammari M, Alkthiry A, Muhammad WS et al (2018) Migraine and headache prevalence and associated comorbidities in a large Saudi sample. Eur Neurol 79(3–4):126–134

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Schurks M, Winter A, Berger K, Kurth T (2014) Migraine and restless legs syndrome: a systematic review. Cephalalgia 34(10):777–794

    Article  Google Scholar 

  33. Yang FC, Lin TY, Chen HJ, Lee JT, Lin CC, Huang WY, Chen HH, Kao CH (2016) Increased risk of restless legs syndrome in patients with migraine: a nationwide population-based cohort study. Medicine 95(5):e2646

    Article  Google Scholar 

  34. Clemens S, Rye D, Hochman S (2006) Restless legs syndrome: revisiting the dopamine hypothesis from the spinal cord perspective. Neurology 67(1):125–130

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Kagan R, Kainz V, Burstein R, Noseda R (2013) Hypothalamic and basal ganglia projections to the posterior thalamus: possible role in modulation of migraine headache and photophobia. Neuroscience 248:359–368

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  36. Yucel M, Akgun H, Oz O, Demirkaya S (2013) Migraine and restless leg syndrome co-morbidity may be due to iron deficiency. Ann Indian Acad Neurol 16(3):461

    Article  Google Scholar 

  37. Cologno D, Cicarelli G, Petretta V, d’Onofrio F, Bussone G (2008) Highprevalence of dopaminergic premonitory symptoms in migraine patients with restless legs syndrome: apathogenetic link? Neurol Sci 29 Suppl 1:S166–S168

    Article  Google Scholar 

  38. Suzuki K, Suzuki S, Miyamoto M, Miyamoto T, Numao A, Watanabe Y, et al. Does pramipexole treatment improve headache in patients with concomitant migraine and restless legs syndrome? Tremor and other hyperkinetic movements. 2013;3.

  39. Yeh P, Walters AS, Tsuang JW (2012) Restless legs syndrome: a comprehensive overview on its epidemiology, risk factors, and treatment. Sleep Breath 16(4):987–1007

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Funding

This research was supported by the Yunnan Province Medical Health Research Institute Project (2018NS0102), the First Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University Doctoral Research Fund Project (2017BS005), and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81371281).

Author information

Author notes

  1. **nglong Yang and Bin Liu contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geriatric Neurology, First Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University, Kunming, 650032, Yunnan, People’s Republic of China

    **nglong Yang, Bin Liu, Fang Wang, Kelu Li, Hui Ren & Zhong Xu

  2. Department of Neurology, The Seventh People’s Hospital of Chengdu, Chengdu, 650041, Sichuan, People’s Republic of China

    Baiyuan Yang

  3. Department of Anesthesia, Kunming **shan District People’s Hospital, Kunming, 650100, Yunnan, People’s Republic of China

    Shimei Li

  4. Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, SCU, Chengdu, 650041, Sichuan, People’s Republic of China

    Fayun Hu

Authors
  1. **nglong Yang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Bin Liu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Baiyuan Yang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Shimei Li
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Fang Wang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Kelu Li
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Fayun Hu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Hui Ren
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. Zhong Xu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Hui Ren or Zhong Xu.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Additional information

Hui Ren and Zhong Xu are co-corresponding author to this article.

Electronic supplementary material

Supplemental Fig. 1

Sensitivity analysis of all included studies. (PNG 305 kb)

High resolution image (TIF 8 kb)

Supplemental Fig. 2

Funnel plot to assess bias in RLS prevalence among migraine patients. (PNG 12 kb)

High resolution image (TIF 1561 kb)

Supplemental Fig. 3

Forest plot of RLS prevalence among MA individuals. (PNG 24 kb)

High resolution image (TIF 1535 kb)

Supplemental Fig. 4

Forest plot of RLS prevalence among MO individuals. (PNG 22 kb)

High resolution image (TIF 1579 kb)

Supplemental Fig. 5

Funnel plot to assess bias in the comparison of RLS prevalence between MA and MO. (PNG 36 kb)

High resolution image (TIF 147 kb)

Supplemental Fig. 6

Funnel plot to assess bias in the comparison of RLS prevalence between migraine patients and healthy controls. (PNG 35 kb)

High resolution image (TIF 150 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Yang, X., Liu, B., Yang, B. et al. Prevalence of restless legs syndrome in individuals with migraine: a systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies. Neurol Sci 39, 1927–1934 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-018-3527-7

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-018-3527-7

Keywords

Search

Navigation