Abstract
Objective: To investigate the effect of L-dopa on the PLM/h index of spinal cord injured subjects. Setting: São Paulo, Brazil. Methods: Thirteen male volunteers with spinal cord section between T7–T12, and mean age of 31.6±8.3 years participated in the study. L-dopa or placebo were administered for 30 days, 1 h before the volunteers went to sleep, in a double blind, crossover design. Polysomnographic recordings were performed on ten occasions: Phase 1: Basal night, following an adaptation night at the sleep laboratory; phase 2: after 1, 7, 21 and 30 days of L-dopa administration; phase 3: first night of L-dopa or placebo withdrawal; phase IV: 1, 7, 21 and 30 days after placebo ingestion. Results: The index of PLM/h on the first night of L-dopa or placebo withdrawal (phase III) was lower than on both the basal night and the first night of L-dopa treatment. At the time of polysomnographic analysis, volunteers were divided into two groups: index of PLM/h below five and those whose index was above five. Comparison between L-dopa and placebo treatments revealed that only those volunteers with an index above five revealed a reduction in PLM in L-dopa. Conclusion: These results indicate that despite the spinal cord lesions, L-dopa treatment is capable of minimizing PLM during sleep.
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de Mello, M., Poyares, D. & Tufik, S. Treatment of periodic leg movements with a dopaminergic agonist in subjects with total spinal cord lesions. Spinal Cord 37, 634–637 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.sc.3100909
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.sc.3100909
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