Testing

Your doctor will diagnose restless legs syndrome based on how you describe your symptoms. It's important to keep track of when symptoms occur and what makes them better or worse, as well as any other sleep problems you are having.

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There is no blood test for RLS. However, your doctor may want you to have blood tests for anemia, which is thought to cause or aggravate restless legs syndrome in some people, or tests for other conditions such as kidney disease or vitamin deficiencies that could be causing your RLS.

A sleep study is required to diagnose some sleep disorders but is not necessary for the diagnosis of RLS. However, your doctor may want a sleep study to check whether you have periodic limb movements during sleep. Your doctor may also recommend other tests to determine whether nerve damage is to blame for your RLS.

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Sleep study