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WEDNESDAY, Oct. 16, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Patients with primary restless leg syndrome who begin dopamine agonist (DA) therapy may be at increased risk for adverse psychiatric events, according to a study published in the September issue of the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine<\/i>.<\/p>\n
Cheryl Hankin, Ph.D., from BioMedEcon in Moss Beach, California, and colleagues evaluated the association between DA initiation and subsequent new-onset psychiatric adverse events among newly diagnosed restless leg syndrome patients (889 DA+ and DA\u2212 matched pairs) who had no history of psychiatric disorder or DA use. Patients were identified through U.S. employer-sponsored plans and Medicare Advantage (July 2008 to December 2014) with two or more years of claims data preceding their first restless leg syndrome diagnosis (“pre-index period”).<\/p>\n
The researchers found that compared with their DA\u2212 counterparts, DA+ patients were nearly two times more likely to develop any psychiatric adverse events (odds ratio, 1.71). DA+ patients were also more likely to develop a severe (odds ratio, 1.68), moderately severe (odds ratio, 1.63), or mild (odds ratio, 1.72) psychiatric adverse event.<\/p>\n
“It may be advisable for health care providers to assess for a range of psychiatric adverse events in patients with restless leg syndrome receiving DAs,” the authors write.<\/p>\n
Several authors reported financial ties to pharmaceutical companies, including Arbor Pharmaceuticals, which funded the study.<\/p>\n
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