Treatment of restless legs syndrome and periodic limb movement disorder: an American Academy of Sleep Medicine systematic review, meta-analysis, and GRADE assessment.

Introduction: This systematic review provides supporting evidence for the accompanying clinical practice guideline on the treatment of restless legs syndrome (RLS) and periodic limb movement disorder (PLMD).

Methods: The American Academy of Sleep Medicine commissioned a task force of experts in sleep medicine. A systematic review was conducted to identify studies that compared the use of pharmacological or nonpharmacological treatment to no treatment to improve patient-important outcomes. Statistical analyses were performed to determine the clinical significance of using various interventions to treat RLS and PLMD in adults and children. The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) process was used to assess the evidence for making recommendations.

Results: The literature search resulted in 3631 studies out of which 148 studies provided data suitable for statistical analyses. The task force provided a detailed summary of the evidence along with the certainty of evidence, the balance of benefits and harms, patient values and preferences, and resource use considerations.