The association between the prevalence of restless leg syndrome, fatigue, and sleep quality in patients undergoing hemodialysis.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of restless legs syndrome (RLS) in patients with chronic renal failure (CRF) and to compare CRF patients with or without RLS in terms fatigue and sleep quality. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 220 patients (18-75 years) who were undergoing dialysis 3 times weekly in Çorum Province, Corum, Turkey, between January 2014 and January 2016. The diagnosis of RLS was based on the diagnostic form proposed by the international RLS study group. Sleep quality was evaluated using the Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI), and severity of fatigue was determined by using fatigue severity scale (FSS). RESULTS: Of all the participants, 16.8% (n= 37) (Group 1) were found to have RLS, while 183 patients had no RLS (Group 2). The mean ages were similar between groups. With respect to laboratory analyses, a p-value of less than 0.05 was considered in Group 1 than in Group 2. Restless legs syndrome was mild (7.1%), moderate (46.4%) and severe (39.3%) in patients with RLS. Factors associated with the severity of RLS included weight, duration of dialysis, anuria, iron, total iron binding capacity, calcium and transferrin saturation. The PSQI and FSS scores were significantly worse in Group 1 (p less than 0.001). CONCLUSION: Restless legs syndrome is a common condition in patients undergoing hemodialysis; the results of our study confirm the adverse effects of RLS in terms of many aspects of sleep quality and fatigue.

Analysis of kyphosis, vertebral fracture and bone mineral density measurement in women living in nursing homes.

OBJECTIVES: To analyze the relationship between vertebral fracture, degree of kyphosis, and BMD in women living in nursing homes. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was carried out in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Hitit University Hospital, Corum, Turkey, betweenJanuary 2014 and January 2015. Of the 126 female patients who participated in the study, 48 lived in nursing homes (nursing-home-group [NHG]), 78 lived in non-nursing home settings (control-group [CG]). Vertebral fractures were evaluated via the semi-quantitative Genant method. Cases in which a Cobb angle measured 40 degrees or more resulted in a diagnosis of kyphosis. RESULTS: The mean age of participants in the NHG was 77.2±7.6 years and 76.8±6.2 years in the CG (p greater than 0.05). The kyphosis rate in the NHG was found to be higher at 52.1% compared to 27.7% for the CG (p less than 0.001). In the NHG, 68.7% had osteoporosis, 31.3% had osteopenia; in the CG, 55.2% had osteoporosis, 32% had osteopenia, 12.8% had normal values (p less than 0.05).The vertebral fracture rate was 37.5% in the NHG and 24.3% in the CG (p greater than 0.05). The Cobb angle had correlation with the number of fractures in both groups (p less than 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The osteoporosis and kyphosis rates of women living in NHG were higher than those of women living in CG. As kyphosis and the number of fractures are correlated, it is important to analyze kyphosis in women residing in NHG.