SynthesisBMC family practice2017
Criteria in diagnosing nocturnal leg cramps: a systematic review.
Synthesis in BMC family practice, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed, 44 citations in OpenAlex.
- Trial
- Effects of Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation on Cramp Threshold Frequency and Pain in Adults with Nocturnal Leg Cramps: An EMG-Based Assessment: Randomized Controlled Trial.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Periodic Leg Movements during Sleep Associated with REM Sleep Behavior Disorder: A Machine Learning Study.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Muscle Cramps in Outpatients with Liver Diseases in Tokyo, Japan.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2023Article
- Clinical features of muscle cramp in 14 dogs.Journal of veterinary internal medicine · 2021Article
- Patient-Reported Prevalence, Characteristics, and Impact of Leg Cramps in an Urban Primary Care Clinic.Annals of family medicineArticle
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundUp to 33% of the general population over 50 years of age are affected by nocturnal leg cramps. Currently there are no generally accepted clinical characteristics, which identify nocturnal leg cramps. This study aims to identify these clinical characteristics and to differentiate between them and the characteristics of restless leg syndrome and periodic limb disorder.
methodA systematic literature study was executed from December 2015 to May 2016. This study comprised of a systematic literature review of randomized clinical trials, observational studies on nocturnal and rest cramps of legs and other muscles, and other systematic and narrative reviews. Two researchers independently extracted literature data and analyzed this using a standardized reviewing protocol. Modified versions of the Cochrane Collaboration tools assessed the risk of bias. A Delphi study was conducted to assess agreement on the characteristics of nocturnal leg cramps.
resultsAfter systematic and manual searches, eight randomized trials and ten observational studies were included. On the basis of these we identified seven diagnostic characteristics of nocturnal leg cramps: intense pain, period of duration from seconds to maximum 10 minutes, location in calf or foot, location seldom in thigh or hamstrings, persistent subsequent pain, sleep disruption and distress.
conclusionThe seven above characteristics will enhance recognition of the condition, and help clinicians make a clear distinction between NLC and other sleep-related musculoskeletal disorder among older adults.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.