Prevalence of restless legs syndrome in pregnant women: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a neurological disorder characterized by sleep disorders, which leads to adverse health consequences in the mother and fetus. Studies have reported different prevalence rates for RLS in pregnant women. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to estimate the prevalence of RLS in pregnant women. METHODS: A literature search was performed via national and international databases, including Scientific Information Database (SID), MagIran, IranMedex, Google Scholar, Science Direct, PubMed, ProQuest, and Scopus. In total, 31 articles were selected without a time limit. The random effects model was used to analyze the data, and the heterogeneity between the studies was examined using the I2 index. The analyses were performed in the Stata software, version 12 and R, version 4. RESULTS: The reviewed studies (n=31) were conducted on a total sample size of 59,151, and the prevalence of RLS in pregnant women was estimated at 21.4% [95% confidence interval CI: 17.7-25.1]. Asia with a prevalence rate of 18.5%, [95% CI: 13.8-23.1] and Europe with a prevalence rate of 25.5%, [95% CI: 19.5-31.6] had the lowest and highest RLS prevalence, respectively. No significant correlations were observed between the prevalence of RLS, publication year of the articles (P=0.972), and participants' age (P=0.202). CONCLUSION: According to the results, RLS is highly common in pregnant women, and it is essential to identify women with RLS to control and eliminate the adverse consequences of the disorder