Association between restless legs syndrome and hypertension: a meta-analysis of nine population-based studies

Previous population-based studies evaluating the association between restless legs syndrome (RLS) and cardiovascular risk factors have showed inconsistent results, especially for the relationship between RLS and hypertension. We, therefore, aimed to meta-analyze to assess the association between RLS and hypertension. PubMed and Embase databases were systematically searched to identify eligible studies. Nine population-based cross-sectional studies were selected for inclusion, involving 102,408 individuals. Overall, the prevalence of hypertension in RLS subjects was higher than those without RLS (OR = 1.36, 95% CI, 1.18-1.57, P = 0.043). Our findings indicate that RLS is associated with increased blood pressure. More large-scale and prospective studies are warranted to further clarify the relationship and its potential mechanism.