Restless Leg Syndrome Medication Gambling

“It was like turning off a light switch…”

1. Restless Leg Syndrome Drug Gambling
2. Restless Leg Syndrome Medication Gambling Treatment
3. Restless Leg Syndrome Medication That Causes Gambling
4. Medications For Restless Leg Syndrome

A new Mayo Clinic study is the first to describe this compulsive gambling in RLS patients who are being treated with medications that stimulate dopamine receptors in the brain. The Mayo Clinic.

Restless Leg Syndrome Drug Gambling

• (CBS/AP) You might have noticed that a common television ad for restless leg syndrome (RLS) now includes an unusual side effect: gambling. That's right, if you suffer from Parkinson's or RLS.
• Pramipexole is the only dopamine agonist currently PBS listed for treating the symptoms of restless legs syndrome. It may be useful if frequent symptoms severely affect a patient's quality of life and non-drug measures prove ineffective. Modest symptomatic benefits need to be weighed against common adverse effects, as well as the possibility of sleep attacks or other less common serious problems.

For Pam S., when she stopped taking a medication prescribed for her restless leg syndrome, she lost her uncontrollable desire to gamble within three days.

Restless Leg Syndrome Medication Gambling Treatment

This after years of problem gambling that had led her to lie to her family and even embezzle funds from her employer.

Researchers discovered a decade ago that the dopamine agonists – drugs used primarily to treat diseases such as Parkinson’s or, in lower doses, restless leg syndrome – could trigger addictive behaviors. Compulsive gambling is one of the surfacing issues, along with binge shopping or eating and hypersexuality.

Dr. M. Leann Dodd, a psychiatrist at the Mayo Clinic, co-authored a 2005 research paper published in the Archives of Neurology on the link between excessive gambling and the medication pramipexole, known as Mirapex. Pramipexole mimics the effects of dopamine on the brain and can reduce muscle tremors typically associated with Parkinson’s and restless leg syndrome.

Dodd’s study cited examples such as a 68-year-old man who lost more than $200,000 at casinos over six months. Similarly, in a Medscape online article authored by University of Michigan 0003pharmacist Joanne M. Pangilinan, she describes a 60-year-old woman with restless leg syndrome who began losing $6,000 a month on slot machines once on her medication.

Restless Leg Syndrome Medication That Causes Gambling

Examples abound and there have been lawsuits filed against Mirapex’s manufacturer. But, despite a flurry of media coverage at the time, little since has been written to keep the public aware of this potential issue.

And, as Pam’s story reminds us, some connections should be remembered.

Medications For Restless Leg Syndrome

If you have questions about medications and their impact on problem gambling or other 0003addictive behaviors, contact Maryhaven’s Bruce Jones at 614/324-5425.