Background Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a prevalent sensorimotor disorder that can dramatically impair sleep quality, daytime function, and quality of life. Although many patients benefit from standard pharmacological therapy, some patients suffer from insufficient treatment response or medication intolerance. Novel treatment approaches are therefore necessary. Objective Given the overlap between RLS and pain syndromes in both pathophysiological mechanisms and certain treatment options, we aimed to perform a scoping review of the available evidence on spinal cord stimulation (SCS) for RLS and discuss potential mechanistic implications. Methods We identified a total of 16 cases of patients with RLS who underwent SCS, all from case reports or case series. Discussion The published evidence is insufficient to assess SCS efficacy in patients with RLS, but SCS remains a promising investigational therapy in RLS on the basis of its potential mitigatory effects in the central hyperexcitability of the sensorimotor cortex through neuromodulation of spinal, subcortical, and cortical areas. A call for further research in this field is presented, with suggestions for future directions and trial designs.

中文翻译：

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脊髓刺激对不宁腿综合征的潜在治疗益处：范围审查和机制考虑

背景 不安腿综合征 (RLS) 是一种普遍存在的感觉运动障碍，可严重损害睡眠质量、日间功能和生活质量。尽管许多患者受益于标准药物治疗，但有些患者治疗反应不足或药物不耐受。因此，需要新的治疗方法。目的 鉴于 RLS 和疼痛综合征在病理生理机制和某些治疗方案上的重叠，我们旨在对脊髓刺激 (SCS) 治疗 RLS 的现有证据进行范围审查，并讨论潜在的机制影响。方法 我们总共确定了 16 例接受 SCS 的 RLS 患者，全部来自病例报告或病例系列。讨论 已发表的证据不足以评估 SCS 对 RLS 患者的疗效，但 SCS 仍然是治疗 RLS 的一种有前景的研究性治疗方法，因为它通过脊髓、皮质下和皮质区域的神经调节对感觉运动皮层的中枢过度兴奋具有潜在的缓解作用。呼吁在这一领域进行进一步的研究，并对未来的方向和试验设计提出建议。