Epidemiology of restless legs in the Netherlands

The prevalence of restless legs syndrome (RLS) in various regions in the world has been estimated between 2.5 and 29%. For the Netherlands these figures are not known. Our observational and cross-sectional study was performed to estimate the prevalence of RLS in the Netherlands. A cross-sectional survey by postal questionnaire was carried out through a general practice in a small town in which one general practice serves 93% of the population. All men and women aged 50 years and older were invited to fill out the questionnaire on leg movements, quality of sleep and daytime symptoms. A total of 1485 (88.2%) persons returned their questionnaire and 1437 (85.4%) patients answered the questions on leg movements. A total of 102 (7.1%) inhabitants answered positively to the questions on leg movements and probably have RLS. The prevalence was higher in women and increased with age. People who complain of RLS have significantly more complaints of disturbances in initiating and maintaining sleep, sleepiness, tiredness during the day and less refreshing sleep. RLS is common in the Netherlands with an estimated prevalence of 7.1% in the population over 50 years of age.