Karl-Axel Ekbom and iron deficiency in restless legs syndrome

✍ Scribed by Hélio A. G. Teive; Renato P. Munhoz

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2009
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 53 KB
• Volume: 24
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0885-3185
• DOI: 10.1002/mds.22502

✦ Synopsis

We read with great interest the article published by Allen and Earley entitled ''The Role of Iron in Restless Legs Syndrome.'' 1 In their introduction, the authors state that in 1945 Ekbom noted a high prevalence of iron deficiency (ID) among patients with restless legs syndrome (RLS). Also according to the authors, the description of the striking relation between ID and RLS led another Swedish neurologist, Nordlander, to not only propose that ID in some body tissue caused RLS but also to successfully treat 21 of 22 patient with RLS with relatively large doses of intravenous (IV) iron. 1 In fact, to our reading, Professor Karl-Axel Ekbom in his article published in 1944, entitled ''Asthenia Crurum Paraesthetica'' (Irritable legs) and in his masterpiece entitled ''Restless Legs,'' published in 1945, did not mention nor suggest any form of relation involving RLS and ID. 2,3 As far as we can detect, a possible causal relationship between RLS and ID was first described in 1953 by Nils-Brage Nordlander at the University of Uppsala. Nordlander reported several patients with anemia and RLS, highlighting specific cases of patients with ID anemia and RLS whose symptoms disappeared after intravenous iron therapy. 4,5 The positive therapeutic results of iron therapy in RLS were later confirmed by others authors, including Professor Karl-Axel Ekbom, 6 the famous Swedish neurologist who rediscovered and in fact clinically defined RLS as a neurological disorder.

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