The changes of transcranial sonography in end-stage renal disease with restless legs syndrome

Objective To discuss the neuroimaging characteristics of transcranial ultrasound in end-stage renal disease (ESRD) with restless legs syndrome. Methods Transcranial sonography (TCS) was performed in ESRD with restless legs syndrome (RLS+ group, n=41), ESRD without restless legs syndrome (RLS- group, n=57) and control group (n=47), who were enrolled in the Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University from January 2017 to December 2018. The differences of the neuroimaging characteristics of TCS in substantia nigra (SN), brainstem raphe (BR) and red nucleus(RN) among the three groups were analyzed. Results The rate of SN hypoechogenicity was significantly higher in RLS+ group (36.6%, 15/41) than that in RLS- group (19.3%, 11/57) and control group(8.5%, 4/47) (χ2=10.6, P<0.05). The rate of abnormal BR echogenicity was significantly higher in RLS+ group (34.1%, 14/41) and RLS- group (29.8%, 17/57) than that in control group(10.6%, 5/47) (χ2=7.7, P<0.05). The rate of RN hyperechogenicity was significantly higher in RLS+ group (51.2%, 21/41) than that in RLS- group (21.1%, 12/57) and control group (10.6%, 5/47) (χ2=19.8, P<0.05). Between RLS+ and RLS- groups, when SN, BR and RN were all of positive performance, the accuracy of diagnosing RLS+ reached 70% (7/10). Conclusions The echogenicity changes of SN, BR and RN on TCS could provide valuable neuroimaging information for the clinical diagnosis and treatment of ESRD with restless legs syndrome. Key words: Ultrasonography, Doppler, transcranial; Substantia nigra; Brainstem raphe; Red nucleus