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. 2025 Aug 1:16:1610871.
doi: 10.3389/fneur.2025.1610871. eCollection 2025.

The impact of periodic leg movements during sleep on neurological recovery in patients with acute mild cerebral infarction

Shutong Sun #  1 , Yixi Zheng #  1 , Liwen Xu  1 , Wenyi Yu  1 , Tianyu Jing  1   2 , Gang Xu  1 , Tieyu Tang  1 , Cheng Chu  1
Affiliations

The impact of periodic leg movements during sleep on neurological recovery in patients with acute mild cerebral infarction

Shutong Sun et al. Front Neurol. .

Abstract

Objective: Acute minor cerebral infarction is a common cerebrovascular disease, and its prognosis is influenced by various factors. This study aims to explore the relationship between nocturnal periodic leg movements and neurological function 3 months after acute mild cerebral infarction.

Methods: A retrospective study was conducted based on hospital records, involving patients diagnosed with acute minor cerebral infarction who underwent polysomnography at Yangzhou University Affiliated Hospital from September 2023 to October 2024. Patients were followed up by phone 3 months later, and the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) was completed. Based on the scores, patients were divided into a good prognosis group (0-2 points) and a poor prognosis group (3-6 points). The correlation between sleep-related scales, polysomnography, and prognosis was analyzed using Spearman correlation analysis. Further, indicators related to prognosis (data with p < 0.05 in correlation analysis) along with age, hypertension, cholesterol, and radiate crown area cerebral infarction were included in a binary logistic regression analysis to assess factors affecting neurological function in patients with acute minor cerebral infarction after 3 months.

Results: A total of 766 patients were included, with 203 patients in the poor prognosis group. The results indicated that patients with a history of hypertension (OR = 0.589, 95% CI = 0.401 to 0.863), higher HCY levels (OR = 1.037, 95% CI = 1.005 to 1.070), radiate crown area cerebral infarction (OR = 1.655, 95% CI = 1.150 to 2.382), longer N1% (OR = 1.032, 95% CI = 1.013 to 1.052), and higher PLMI (OR = 1.006, 95% CI = 1.001 to 1.010) are risk factors for the prognosis of Acute minor cerebral infarction patients at 3 months (p < 0.05).

Conclusion: PLMS is an independent risk factor for impaired neurological recovery in patients with acute minor cerebral infarction. This finding suggests that systematic sleep monitoring should be conducted in clinical practice for acute minor cerebral infarction, and early identification and intervention targeting PLMS may become a new focus for improving long-term prognosis in patients.

Keywords: acute mild cerebral infarction; neurological function; prognosis; sleep disorders; sleep periodic limb movement.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Correlation analysis of prognosis in patients with acute minor cerebral infarction.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Forest plot of independent risk factors for poor prognosis.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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