Although restless leg syndrome (RLS) and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) share some of the same risk factors and treatments, researchers aren’t yet sure if they’re connected.
RLS and OSA are common sleep conditions. They share many of the same risk factors, and it’s common for people to have both.
Treatments such as improving your sleep hygiene and making certain lifestyle changes can sometimes improve symptoms of both conditions.
Additional treatment options depend on the severity of both conditions but can include continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machines, surgery, and medications.
RLS can make it difficult to get a good night’s sleep. OSA can also interrupt your rest and leave you with symptoms like excessive daytime sleepiness.
These sleep conditions are fairly common, and it’s possible for people to have both RLS and OSA. In fact, it’s
Despite this, there’s no proven causation between the two. This means that no research shows that RLS causes OSA, or that OSA causes RLS. However, RLS and OSA share many risk factors. This could be why some people have both conditions.
Risk factors for both RLS and OSA include:
- obesity
- type 2 diabetes
- Parkinson’s disease
- high blood pressure
- congestive heart failure
- chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
Family history can also influence both conditions. Additionally, they’re both more common as a person ages.
Can a lack of oxygen cause restless leg syndrome?
Some research has looked into the link between a lack of blood oxygen, called hypoxia, and RLS.
Some studies suggest a connection between a lack of oxygenated blood in the legs and RLS. However, this isn’t fully understood, and more research is needed to know for sure.
Multiple options are available to treat OSA and RLS together. A plan to treat both conditions will depend on the severity of your symptoms, any other medical conditions you have, and your overall health.
Common treatment options include the following.
Treatments for both OSA and RLS
Your lifestyle and routines can influence both RLS and OSA. Try:
- Optimising your diet and exercise: Making changes to your lifestyle—such as eating a nutritious diet, maintaining a healthy weight, and increasing your exercise—can reduce symptoms of these conditions.
- Quitting smoking: By reducing or quitting smoking, you’re likely to experience many health benefits. This may also improve RLS and OSA symptoms.
- Avoiding dietary triggers: Reducing or avoiding alcohol and caffeine can sometimes help relieve symptoms of both conditions.
- Improving your sleep hygiene: Taking steps to improve your sleep hygiene can help reduce symptoms of both RLS and OSA.
Additional treatments for OSA
Some treatments for OSA may be able to improve your RLS symptoms. Talk with your doctor to see if they may be helpful for you.
- Oral appliances: Oral appliances are devices that can reposition your jaw so that your airways stay open during sleep. They’re often custom-made by dental professionals.
- CPAP machines: A CPAP machine is a treatment you use at home every night. You wear a mask over your face and nose. It supplies air pressure that keeps your airways open.
- Upper airway stimulation (UAS): UAS devices are options for people whom CPAP doesn’t help. They’re an implanted treatment that can provide permanent relief for some people.
- Surgery: Some people need surgery to remove tissues or other obstructions that are making breathing difficult.
- Iron supplements: Iron supplements can help reduce the symptoms of RLS.
- Prescription dopamine-increasing medications: Dopamine-increasing medications, such as gabapentin, are a common option for RLS treatment.
- Anticonvulsants: Anticonvulsant medications can help calm muscle movement and relieve RLS symptoms.
- Benzodiazepines: Benzodiazepines are sometimes an option to help treat RLS symptoms, such as insomnia and anxiety.
Can using a CPAP machine cure RLS?
A CPAP machine is the primary treatment for OSA. Treating OSA could improve your overall sleep quality, which can improve the symptoms of RLS and reduce flares. However, a CPAP machine isn’t a cure for RLS.
The VA recognizes both RLS and OSA as conditions that can significantly affect your life. The VA rates conditions based on how severe they are and how much they affect people’s lives.
If you meet certain requirements, you can qualify for VA disability benefits. The higher your specific condition is rated, the greater your benefits will be. Currently, OSA benefits are available between 0% and 100%, while RLS benefits are available between 0% and 60%.
If you have diagnoses of both RLS and OSA but don’t experience any symptoms or disruptions to your life, you won’t qualify for benefits. However, if you do experience symptoms and your conditions affect your ability to work and go about your daily activities, you can qualify for benefits on an increasing scale.
The VA uses a combination system when it’s calculating percentages for benefits. So, if your OSA was rated 60% and your RLS was rated 20%, the VA would take both of these percentages into account when determining your total.
According to the combination table published in the most recent VA Federal Regulations, you would have a total disability benefit percentage of 68% in this example.
RLS and OSA are two conditions that affect sleep and that often occur together. Although it’s common for people to experience both conditions, there isn’t a proven link between the two.
That said, they do share many common risk factors, and taking lifestyle steps such as maintaining a healthy weight, quitting smoking, and improving your sleep hygiene can sometimes help relieve both conditions.
Additional treatments can include a CPAP machine, oral appliances, surgery, and medications.