Increased frequency of restless legs syndrome in atopic dermatitis.

BACKGROUND: Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is characterized by an unpleasant sensation in the legs, which is difficult to describe, but produces an urge to move the legs frequently. AIM: To assess the prevalence and severity of RLS in patients with atopic dermatitis (AD) and patients with psoriasis, and to investigate the factors potentially associated with RLS. METHODS: In total, 253 people were enrolled (120 with AD, 50 with psoriasis and 83 healthy controls). A diagnosis of RLS was made according to the criteria of the International RLS Study Group (IRLSSG), and severity was assessed using the IRLSSG severity scale. RESULTS: RLS was significantly more common in patients with AD (40.8%) than in patients with psoriasis (18.0%) or in controls (10.8%) (P<0.01 and P<0.001, respectively). Prevalence of RLS was higher in patients with active AD than in those with inactive AD (55.3% vs. 23.6%) or controls. There was a significant difference in RLS prevalence between patients with active and those with iactive AD, between patients with active AD and healthy controls, between patients with active AD and patients with psoriasis, and between patients with inactive AD and healthy controls (P<0.001, P<0.001, P<0.001, P=0.04, respectively). There was no significant difference in RLS prevalence between patients with active AD and patients with psoriasis, or between patients with psoriasis and healthy controls (P>0.05). Of patients who were positive for RLS, 56.9% had a family history of atopy and 40.3% had a family history of RLS, and there was a significant relationship between the presence of RLS and family history of atopy or RLS (P<0.001 for both). CONCLUSIONS: RLS is common in patients with AD, particularly in those with active disease.

Body mass index percentile curves for predominantly breastfed children aged 0-2 years from Ankara, Turkey.

OBJECTIVE: The percentiles of weight, height and body mass index (BMI) change markedly from one country to another and also from one city to another, particularly in childhood. The aim of the present study is to construct BMI percentile curves for predominantly breastfed Turkish children aged 0-2 years from Ankara, Turkey. METHODS: The study population consisted of healthy boys and girls aged 0-2 years from the middle-high socioeconomic status between 2002 and 2004 in well child clinic of Gazi University School of Medicine, Ankara, Turkey. The BMI values for boys and girls were calculated from the height and weight measurements, and BMI percentile values and curves were obtained separately for boys and girls by the LMS method. RESULTS: The current findings indicate that the BMI percentile values for boys are higher than those for girls in general. The estimated curves for BMI showed that there was a constant increase in BMI values towards 7th or 8th month and a slight decrease until 24th month in both boys and girls. CONCLUSIONS: The current study presents percentile curves for BMI values in predominantly breastfed Turkish children aged 0 to 2 years living in Ankara, Turkey. To our knowledge, this is the first study considering BMI percentiles for predominantly breastfed Turkish children aged 0-2 years. However, WHO multicenter growth reference study curves can be used until constructing multicenter BMI reference curves representing Turkey (Fig. 2, Tab. 3, Ref. 19).