Experts have alerted patients with restless legs syndrome about a rare side effect of medications that treat the condition.
The drugs, known as dopamine agonists, are offered on the NHS but can cause some people to develop compulsive gambling and sex addiction, they say.
Restless legs syndrome affects up to 10 percent of the population and causes an unpleasant “crawling” sensation in the legs, especially at night, and an almost irresistible urge to move them.
Dopamine agonists interact with parts of the brain that control movement and have been found to relieve restless legs. They are also prescribed for Parkinson’s disease (a neurological condition that affects movement), but there is a considerable drawback.
They also affect the parts of the brain that regulate feelings of pleasure and reward, meaning people may find greater pleasure in stimulating activities such as shopping, sex and gambling. And this can quickly lead to addiction.
“These drugs are well known to cause impulse control disorders, such as compulsive gambling and sex addiction, in up to one in five Parkinson’s patients,” says Dr. Guy Leschziner, an expert in sleep disorders and neurology. .
And he adds: ‘The problem is that we don’t have many other options for either condition. Crucially, every patient receiving a dopamine agonist must be informed of the risk.
“For people who have had these side effects and haven’t been warned, it can ruin their life.”
Restless legs syndrome affects up to 10 per cent of Britons and causes an unpleasant “crawling” sensation in the legs, especially at night, and an almost irresistible urge to move them.
A restless legs syndrome patient affected by the side effect told The Mail on Sunday he developed a serious gambling addiction and lost £100,000.
The 54-year-old married father of two, who asked to be referred to only as Mr. Wilson, had never placed a bet before being prescribed the dopamine agonist ropinirole in 2014. After months of near-constant twitching in the legs, he says he felt “relieved.” that the GP offered him a diagnosis of restless legs syndrome and a solution to his sleepless nights.
She was prescribed a low dose of ropinirole, but because her symptoms persisted, her doctor gradually increased it over two years.
Over time, the symptoms of restless legs syndrome went away, but that’s when his other problems began. ‘I remember seeing an advert on my computer for an online slot machine, which said it offered better odds than the lottery. I thought, well, I do that, why not try it?
‘It all started little by little, with bets and I was winning a little. But when I started losing, I chased my losses. That’s when everything took off and I was betting daily.
“It really drove a wedge between me and my family. I was incredibly secretive about what was happening, but my personality started to change and I was becoming aggressive.’
Over four years taking the drug, he lost £100,000 betting on online pokies at dozens of betting shops. ‘I took out two loans, maxed out the credit cards and almost lost all our savings. I gambled at every opportunity, even while I was at work,” he said. “It almost cost me everything.”

Over four years taking the drug, Wilson lost £100,000 betting on online pokies at dozens of betting shops (file image)
Doctors failed to warn Mr Wilson about the side effects on multiple occasions, even failing to make the connection when he returned to his GP “begging” for help with his gambling habit.
It was only when he told a hospital consultant, during a routine appointment for another problem, that he was struggling with gambling, that he was told his medication could be the cause.
After a lengthy legal battle, the NHS finally admitted full liability and was awarded £150,000 compensation and damages.
‘It should never have happened, we lost years of our lives that we will never get back. We survived and are moving forward positively as a family,” says Mr Wilson.
In December, Philip Stevens, 66, from Ringwood, Hampshire, won £70,000 compensation after developing a gambling addiction while taking ropinirole for restless legs syndrome.
Impulse control disorder is not the only side effect. According to a survey by RLS-UK of more than 3,000 people with the condition, 65 per cent of those who had taken dopamine agonists changed medications because their restless legs symptoms worsened.
Overwhelming research evidence has led the American Academy of Sleep Medicine to release new guidelines in November urging U.S. doctors not to prescribe dopamine agonists and instead opt for dopamine blockers. calcium channels.
Campaigners are calling for an urgent update to prescribing guidelines. ‘These medications should only be used for end-of-life care and never as a first treatment for patients. We really need to see official guidelines developed for restless legs syndrome,” says Julie Gould, administrator of RLS-UK.