0941 Limb Movements in Sleep [LMS] and PTSD-related Physical Symptoms: Preliminary Observations

Introduction Periodic Limb Movements in Sleep [PLMS] can be present in over 60% of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder [PTSD] patients versus about 10% in the general population. PTSD is often associated with physical complaints. In the general population PLMS can be associated with physical symptoms . To my knowledge the association of PLMS and physical complaints in PTSD has not been reported. Methods 106 PTSD patients [all from MAG’s practice] completed a battery of instruments. 44/106 patients (mean age+/-SD = 47.04+/-13.27 years; 89.6% female) met the inclusion criteria (no current use of benzodiazepines or narcotics; ability to have LMS ratings completed by bed partner). All participants met the DSM-5 criteria for moderate-to-severe PTSD during their initial consultation, with a Clinician Administered PTSD Scale for DSM-5 (CAPS-5) score of at least 55. The PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5) was used to obtain an index of the current PTSD severity (mean = 37.41, SD = 19.84; PCL-5 > 30 cut-off for PTSD). Limb Movements in Sleep [LMS] were considered a proxy for PLMS [ICSD3, 2014] and were measured using Item 10c of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index [PSQI] [Buysse DJ,1989] where the patients’ bed partner rated the patients’ severity of “Legs twitching or jerking while they slept”; Low-LMS frequency included "< one time per week" or "not during the past month" and High-LMS frequency included " once or twice a week " and " three or more times a week".Physical symptoms were rated using the Pennebaker Inventory of Limbic Languidness [PILL][Pennebaker JW,1982] which rates 54 physical symptoms using the following scale: 1=Have never or almost never experienced the symptom; 2=Less than 3 or 4 times per year; 3=Every month or so; 4=Every week or so; and 5=More than once every week. Results The mean scores of 20/54 PILL items were significantly [ p< 0.05] lower between the Low- versus High-LMS groups. The total 54 item mean PILL score was significantly [p=0.002] greater in the PTSD group with High-LMS [PILL score of 105 ] versus the Low-LMS scores [PILL score of 73]. Conclusion PTSD patients with more frequent limb movements during sleep had greater daytime physical complaints. Support (if any) None