What are sleep leg cramps?

Sleep-related leg cramps are sudden and intense feelings of pain in the leg or foot. The pain is caused when a muscle contracts and tightens. The cramps occur without you being able to control them. They may happen while you are still awake or after you are asleep.

They normally begin very suddenly. Sometimes, they may begin slowly with less painful warning signs. The muscle cramps can last for a few seconds or several minutes. They end as suddenly as they began. They may occur as rarely as once per year in some people. Other people can have many cramps every night. In many people, the cramps tend to come and go over many years.

The cramps can be relieved by stretching the affected muscle. The muscle may still be tender and sore several hours after the cramp. At times, leg cramps can also be eased by the following:

Massaging the area in pain
Applying heat to the muscle
Moving the affected leg or foot

The muscle cramp not only causes pain, but it can also disturb your sleep. It can make it hard for you to fall asleep. It may also wake you up after you have been asleep. The soreness felt after the cramp can also make it hard for you to go back to sleep again.

Leg cramps are sometimes confused with restless legs syndrome (RLS). Both problems involve discomfort with the legs during the time of sleep. RLS usually does not involve a feeling of pain nor does the muscle become tight. It also tends to be at least partly relieved as soon as there is any leg movement. This urge to move the legs is much stronger with RLS than with leg cramps. Relieving the pain from leg cramps involves more time and more stretching of the muscle. RLS also tends to occur in the evening hours while still and may prevent falling asleep. Sleep leg cramps tend to happen during sleep or around the time you go to sleep.

What are symptoms of sleep leg cramps?

You may have sleep-related leg cramps if:

You get a painful feeling in your leg or foot as a muscle contracts and tightens
This occurs around the time when you sleep
The pain eases when you stretch the muscle that is causing you pain

It is also important to know if there is something else that is causing your sleep problems. They may be a result of one of the following:

Another sleep disorder
A medical condition
Medication use
A mental health disorder
Substance abuse

What are risk factors for sleep leg cramps?

Sleep-related leg cramps can occur at almost any age. They are more common and frequent in the elderly. Thirty-three percent of those over 60 years of age have sleep-related leg cramps at least once every two months. Almost every adult over the age of 50 years will have them at least one time. About 7% of children and teens have leg cramps that are not very frequent. They do not seem to occur before a child reaches the age of eight. Leg cramps occur in about 40% of pregnant women. They tend to go away after delivery.

You are more likely to have sleep-related leg cramps if you also have any of the following medical conditions:

Diabetes
Blood vessel disease
Some metabolic disorders
Some nerve or muscle diseases

Leg cramps can also be related to the following circumstances:

Vigorous exercise
Use of certain medications
Dehydration
Fluid and electrolyte disturbances
Endocrine disorders
Disorders that make you less mobile

How to diagnose sleep leg cramps?

Talk with your medical provider about your leg cramps. Your medical provider may be able to help you find simple ways to relieve the pain and deal with the problem. You may need to see a sleep doctor if the leg cramps continue to cause severe sleep problems that affect your daily life.

Doctors do not need any tests to treat most patients with leg cramps.

How to treat sleep leg cramps?

Effective treatments for sleep-related leg cramps still have not been developed. A daily exercise program that involves stretching of the leg muscles may be the best way for you to prevent and relieve leg cramps. Staying hydrated is also important. Massage or a hot shower before bed might be helpful, as well as untucking the sheets before getting under the covers.