Department of Psychiatry, Kangwon National University School of Medicine, Kangwon, Korea.
Neurology. 2010 Feb 9;74(6):513-8. doi: 10.1212/WNL.0b013e3181cef824.
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors have been associated with the risk of restless legs syndrome (RLS), suggesting that dysregulation of serotonergic neurotransmission may provoke or exacerbate RLS.
We compared the availability of serotonin transporter (SERT) between 16 drug-naïve patients with RLS and 16 healthy controls. SERT was measured in the pons and medulla via [(123)I]-2beta-carbomethoxy-3beta-(4-iodophenyl) tropane (beta-CIT) SPECT. A ratio of specific to nonspecific brain uptake (V(3)'') was used for all comparisons. RLS was diagnosed according to the criteria proposed by the National Institute of Health, and its severity was measured using the International RLS Study Group (IRLSSG) Severity Scale.
The availability of SERT was similar in the RLS group and the control group with regards to the pons (1.24 +/- 0.31 vs 1.24 +/- 0.25, p > 0.1) and the medulla (0.99 +/- 0.25 vs 1.00 +/- 0.23, p > 0.1). However, IRLSSG Severity Scale scores increased with decrease of SERT availability in both the pons (beta = -0.50, t = -3.19, p = 0.009) and the medulla (beta = -0.42, t = -2.44, p = 0.03).
Although serotonin transporter (SERT) availability in pons and medulla was similar in the restless legs syndrome (RLS) group and the control group, the severity of RLS symptoms increased as the availability of SERT decreased. These data partially support the hypothesis that an increase of serotonergic neurotransmission in the brainstem may exacerbate RLS, possibly via dual modulations on striatal dopaminergic neurotransmission and on the activities of spinal motor and sensory neurons.
选择性 5-羟色胺再摄取抑制剂与不宁腿综合征（RLS）的风险相关，提示 5-羟色胺能神经传递的失调可能引发或加重 RLS。
我们比较了 16 名未经药物治疗的 RLS 患者和 16 名健康对照者的脑桥和延髓中的 5-羟色胺转运体（SERT）。通过 [(123)I]-2β- 碳甲氧基-3β-(4-碘苯基)托烷（β-CIT）SPECT 测量 SERT。所有比较均使用特异性与非特异性脑摄取比值（V(3)''）。RLS 根据美国国立卫生研究院提出的标准进行诊断，并使用国际 RLS 研究组（IRLSSG）严重程度量表进行测量。
RLS 组和对照组的脑桥 SERT 可用性相似（1.24 ± 0.31 对 1.24 ± 0.25，p > 0.1）和延髓（0.99 ± 0.25 对 1.00 ± 0.23，p > 0.1）。然而，IRLSSG 严重程度量表评分随着脑桥（β=-0.50，t=-3.19，p=0.009）和延髓（β=-0.42，t=-2.44，p=0.03）中 SERT 可用性的降低而增加。
尽管脑桥和延髓中的 5-羟色胺转运体（SERT）在 RLS 组和对照组之间相似，但 SERT 可用性降低时 RLS 症状的严重程度增加。这些数据部分支持这样一种假设，即脑干中 5-羟色胺能神经传递的增加可能通过对纹状体多巴胺能神经传递和脊髓运动和感觉神经元的活动的双重调节来加重 RLS。
