RLS or PN does it matter?

[Highshot]

Is the treatment for peripheral neuropathy and painful restless legs syndrome the same?

I don’t know which I have but if treatment is the same then I guess it doesn’t matter?

[AtopicGuy]

Further to my previous reply, restless legs syndrome (RLS) sometimes occurs when there is no apparent cause. It is different when the patient is in pain due to peripheral neuropathy (PN). The constant urge to move is no mystery when it temporarily distracts the brain from terrible discomfort. The focus should be on treating the underlying nerve pain.

[Highshot in reply to AtopicGuy]

I get what you are telling me. I will continue to find ways of treating/relieving the pain. I think pregablin is taking the edge off a bit but not much. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[AtopicGuy in reply to Highshot]

Indeed. Drugs like pregabalin take a few weeks to reach maximum effect. If you are not getting adequate relief by then, there are other alternatives your doctor can try. Keep searching for the one that suits you best.

[Esperanto in reply to AtopicGuy]

The focus should be on finding the underlying causes, to stop the PN / RLS…

[AtopicGuy in reply to Esperanto]

Have you read the OP's profile?

[Esperanto in reply to AtopicGuy]

There is more about OP's problems to be found in his previous post "Peripheral neuropathy v RLS". We have already exchanged some information there. Understand me correctly, as a fellow sufferer of PN, I know what it is like to constantly live with pain. It is only natural that you seek help for it. But my biggest concern was that the PN would progress and even affect my hands and arms. Thank goodness I was able to prevent that, but if I had left it up to my neurologists, only pain management would have been done and the situation would have become disastrous. Hopefully, you understand my allergic reaction...

[Highshot in reply to Esperanto]

OP’s ??

[Esperanto in reply to Highshot]

Original Poster = you

[AtopicGuy]

I recall the previous post, as I also contributed to that. Parallels between your PN and the OP's PN are impossible to draw unless both your comorbidities are also compared. I feel that's better left to his specialists. The commonest cause of PN is diabetes, but there are other, rarer types.

[Esperanto in reply to AtopicGuy]

It is important to identify and understand comorbidities for effective treatment. Leaving it solely to your doctors seems unwise; it's better to do it together with them. If three neurologists cannot agree on the cause of the pain symptoms, it is not surprising that you are seeking help from other sources such as HU. I simply do not believe that it is a coincidence that such symptoms occur simultaneously, and I am also allergic to the term idiopathic neuropathy. Of course, there is a cause and perhaps a link to RLS as well.

The relationship between my form of PN and Highshot's may be greater than you think. RLS is often a precursor to my underlying disease, Parkinson's. Deficiencies in the mentioned B vitamins are relatively common in all three diseases. I am not saying that this necessarily applies to Highshot, but it may be worth checking your B2 and B6 levels in addition to B12 and B9.

I had a separate neurologist for PD and PN. Both of them did not believe in any connection between the diseases. On my own initiative, I had my B6 levels tested, and it turned out they were almost non-existent. Yet, they maintained that this had nothing to do with PD and PN. Only after a year did they reluctantly admit that there was a significant improvement in PD symptoms, that the PN had indeed stopped and almost disappeared in my hands and arms, and that the only possible cause could be the P5P supplementation. Taking some initiative on your own can really do no harm….

[AtopicGuy in reply to Esperanto]

I agree that "The relationship between my form of PN and Highshot's may be greater than you think". My point is that you should seek his medical history before assuming the answer, if your aim is to be helpful. So far, Highshot has chosen not to explain how his symptoms developed; only to request advice on the distinction/connection between PN and RLS. Your extensive experience of PN would be better given its own thread. I look forward to reading it.