Does anyone have contact information for Dr Dean Edell?
Dear Dr. Edell:
On your radio show several days ago, in response to a caller inquiring about the possible side effect of Requip involving increased pension for gambling etc. I was distressed to hear you rather poo-poo the condition known as 'Restless Leg Syndrome - RLS'.
You said something to the effect that it was just a combination of inability to sleep and various problems with the legs, inferring that it was just another excuse for the drug companies to market drugs. That these drugs have side effects worse than the problems they claim to treat.
Until you have suffered with RLS as I have, you have no idea how debilitating it can be. I have spent nights standing leaning against the wall trying to get some sleep and hoping not to fall over and hurt myself. I have also spent nights standing along side the bed with the upper part of my body laying across the foot of the bed attempting catch a few winks before morning. I have tried Quinine, muscle relaxers, alcohol, pain medication, and numerous other avenues in an attempt to find help. None of these were of much comfort. Not until I took Requip did I find any relief that allowed me to get a normal night's sleep or watch an uninterrupted movie, airplane ride, car trip, any activity that required sitting for a length of time.
In conclusion, it is distressful to hear a professional such as yourself treat an ailment such as RLS as an inconsequential overstatement of normality. RLS is NOT inconsequential and can literally rob a person of a normal lifestyle.
