Leg cramps causes & treatment - Illnesses & conditions - NHS ...

During a cramp, your muscles suddenly contract (shorten), causing pain in your leg. This is known as a spasm, and you cannot control the ... Home Illnessesandconditions Symptomsandself-help Testsandtreatments Healthyliving Care,supportandrights Scotland'sServiceDirectory Coronavirus(COVID-19) Bookacoronavirusboostervaccination Coronavirus(COVID-19): Vaccineinformation | COVIDStatus | Bookatest  Home Illnessesandconditions Muscle,boneandjoints Conditions Legcramps Legcramps Seeallpartsofthisguide Hideguideparts 1. Aboutlegcramps 2. Symptomsoflegcramps 3. Causesoflegcramps 4. Treatinglegcramps Aboutlegcramps Legcrampsareacommonandusuallyharmlessconditionwherethemusclesinyour legsuddenlybecometightandpainful. Itusuallyoccursinthecalfmuscles,althoughitcanaffectanypartofyourleg,includingyourfeetandthighs. After thecrampinghaspassed,youmayhavepainandtendernessinyourlegforseveralhours. Threeoutoffour casesoccuratnightduringsleep. Readmoreaboutthesymptomsoflegcramps. Whatcauseslegcramps? Legcrampscanoccurfornoapparentreason,knownasidiopathiclegcramps,orasasymptomorcomplicationofahealthcondition,knownassecondarylegcramps. Causesofsecondarylegcrampscan include: pregnancy exercise  certaintypesofmedication,suchasstatins(medicinesthathelplowercholesterollevels) liverdisease Duringacramp,yourmusclessuddenlycontract(shorten),causingpaininyourleg.Thisisknownasaspasm,andyoucannotcontroltheaffectedmuscle. Thecrampcanlastfromafewsecondsto10minutes.Whenthespasmpasses,youwillbeabletocontroltheaffectedmuscleagain. Readmoreaboutthecausesoflegcramps. WhentoseeyourGP Speakto yourGPifyourlegcrampsareaffectingyourqualityoflife;forexample,ifyouhavefrequentlegcrampsortheyareinterferingwithyoursleep. YourGPwillaskaboutyoursymptomsandexamineyourlegsandfeet.Theymayalsoaskifyouhaveothersymptoms,suchasnumbnessorswelling,whichmaybeasignthatyouhavesecondarylegcrampscausedbyanunderlyingcondition. Inthiscase, youmayneedfurthertests,suchasbloodtestsandurinetests,toruleoutotherconditions. Treatinglegcramps Mostcasesoflegcrampscanberelievedbyexercisingtheaffectedmuscles.Exercisingyourlegsduringthedaywilloftenhelpreducehowoftenyougetcrampingepisodes. Stretches Tostretchyourcalfmuscles,standwiththefronthalfofyourfeetonastep,withyourheelshangingofftheedge.Slowlyloweryourheelssothattheyarebelowthelevelofthestep.Holdforafewsecondsbeforeliftingyourheelsbackuptothestartingposition.Repeatanumberoftimes. Medicationisusuallyonlyneededinthemostpersistentcaseswherecrampingdoesnotrespondtoexercise. Ifyouhavesecondarylegcramps,treatingtheunderlyingcausemayhelprelieveyoursymptoms. Legcrampsthatoccurduringpregnancyshouldpassafterthebabyisborn. Treatingcrampsthatoccurasaresultofseriousliverdiseasecanbemoredifficult.Yourtreatmentplanmayincludeusingmedicationssuchasmusclerelaxants. Readmoreabouttreatinglegcramps Preventinglegcramps Ifyouoftengetlegcramps,regularlystretchingthemusclesinyourlowerlegsmayhelppreventthecrampsorreducetheirfrequency. Youmightfinditusefultostretchyourcalvesbeforeyougotobedeachnight(seestretchingadviceaboveortrythispost-exercisecalfstretch). Thefollowingnight-timeadvice mayalsohelp: Ifyoulieonyourback,makesurethatyourtoespointupwards–placingapillowonitssideattheendofyourbed,withthesolesofyourfeetproppedupagainstitmayhelpkeepyourfeetintherightposition.  Ifyoulieonyourfront,hangyourfeetovertheendofthebed–thiswillkeepyourfeetinarelaxedpositionandhelpstopthemusclesinyourcalvesfromcontractingandtensing. Keepyoursheetsandblanketsloose. Symptomsoflegcramps Alegcrampisanepisodeofsuddenpaininthemusclesofthelegcausedbyaninvoluntarycontracting(shortening)ofthelegmuscle. Mostlegcrampsoccurinthecalfmusclesand,lesscommonly,inthefeetandthighs. Crampscanlastfromafewsecondsupto10minutes.Thighmusclecramps tendtolastthelongest. Duringa crampingepisode,theaffectedmuscleswillbecometightandpainfuland thefeetandtoeswillbe stiff. Afterthecrampshavepassed,youmayhave painandtendernessinyourlegsforseveralhours. Whentoseekmedicaladvice Ifyouonlyget legcramps occasionally,itis notacauseforconcernandamedicaldiagnosisisnotrequired. AvisittoyourGPwillonlybenecessaryifyougetlegcrampsfrequently,oriftheyareso painfultheydisruptyoursleepandyouareunableto functionnormallythenextday. YoushouldalsovisityourGPifthemusclesinyourlegsareshrinkingorbecomingweaker. Whentoseekimmediatemedicaladvice Therearetwosituationswhere legcrampsmaybeasign ofamoreseriousunderlyinghealthcondition. Youshouldseekimmediatemedicalhelpif: Thecrampslastlongerthan10minutesandfailtoimprove,despiteexercise. Crampsdevelopafteryoucome intocontactwithsubstancesthatcouldbetoxic(poisonous)orinfectious,forexample,ifyouhaveacutthatiscontaminatedwithsoil,whichcansometimescauseabacterialinfection,suchastetanus,orafterbeingexposedtoelementssuchasmercuryorlead. Inthesecircumstances,contactyourGPforadviceimmediately.Ifthisisn'tpossible, contactyourlocalout-of-hoursservice orcallthe NHS24'111'service. Causesoflegcramps Thecauseoflegcrampsissometimesunknown(idiopathic).Inothercases,theremaybeanunderlyingconditionoranotheridentifiablecause. Idiopathiclegcramps Althoughthecauseofidiopathiclegcrampsisunknown,thereareanumberoftheoriesaboutwhatmightcauseidiopathiclegcramps.Theseinclude: abnormalnerveactivityduringsleepwhichcausesthemuscleofthelegtocramp excessivestrainplacedonlegmuscles,suchaswhenexercising, maycausethemusclestocrampatcertaintimes asuddenrestrictioninthebloodsupplytotheaffectedmuscles Also,tendonsnaturallyshortenovertimeasapersongetsolder,whichmayexplain whyolderpeople areparticularlyaffectedbylegcramps.Tendonsaretoughbandsoftissuethatconnectmusclestobone.Ifyour tendonsbecometooshort,theymaycausethemusclesconnectedtothemtocramp. Secondarylegcramps Secondarylegcrampsarecausedby anunderlyingconditionoranother identifiablecause.These include: pregnancy:theextraweightof pregnancycanplacestrainonthelegmuscles,makingthemmorevulnerabletocramping exercise:legcrampsareoftenexperiencedwhenrestingafterexercise neurologicalconditions(conditionsthataffectthenervesinyourlegmuscles):forexample, motorneuronediseaseor peripheralneuropathy liverdisease:ifyourliverstopsworkingproperly,toxinswillbuildupinyourblood,whichcanmakeyourmusclesgointospasm infection:sometypesofbacterialinfection,suchastetanus,cancausemusclecrampsandspasm toxins:insomepeople,highlevelsoftoxic(poisonous)substancesintheblood,suchasleadormercury,cancauselegcramps dehydration:insomepeople,lowlevelsofwaterinthe bodycanleadtoadropinyoursaltlevels,whichcantriggermusclecramps Medication Certainmedicationshavebeenknowntocauselegcrampsinasmallnumberofpeople.Theseinclude: diuretics:theseremovefluidfromthebodyandareusedtotreatconditionssuchashighbloodpressure, heartfailureandsometypesofkidneydisease statins:theseare usedtotreatpeoplewithhighcholesterollevels intheirblood  raloxifene:thisisusedtopreventosteoporosis(thinningofthebones)inwomenwhohaveexperienced the menopause nifedipine:thisisusedtotreatanginaandRaynaud’sphenomenon  nicotinicacid:thisis usedto treathighcholesterol ContactyourGPifyouthink yourmedicationmaybecausingyourlegcrampsas yourdosage mayneedtobeadjusted.NeverstoptakingaprescribedmedicationunlessyourGPoranotherqualifiedhealthcareprofessionalwhoisresponsibleforyourcareadvisesyoutodoso.  Treatinglegcramps Ifthecauseofyourlegcrampsisknown,itmaybepossibletotreattheunderlyingcause. Forexample,secondarylegcrampsthatarerelatedtoliverdiseasearecausedbyhighlevelsoftoxinsinthebloodwhichtriggermusclesspasms.Therefore,musclerelaxantscanbeusedtohelppreventyourmusclesfromgoingintospasm. Ifthecauseofyourlegscrampsisunknown(primaryidiopathiclegcramps),acombinationofexerciseandpainkillingmedicationisusuallyrecommended. Exercises Mostcasesoflegcrampscanbetreatedwithexercises.Therearetwotypesofexercisethatyoucando: exercisesyoudo duringanepisodeofcrampingtorelievethepainandstopthecramping exercisesyoudoduringthedaytoreducehowoftenyougetlegcramps Thetwotypesofexercisesareexplainedbelow.  Exercisesduringcramps Duringanepisodeoflegcramp,stretchandmassagetheaffectedmuscle. Forexample,ifthecrampisinyourcalfmuscle: Straightenyourlegandliftyourfootupwards,bendingitattheanklesothatyourtoespointtowardsyourshin. Walkaroundonyourheelsforafewminutes. Exercisestopreventcramps Toreduceyourrisk ofgetting legcrampsinthefuture,youshoulddoexercisestostretchtheaffectedmusclesthreetimesaday. Forexample,ifyourcalfmusclesareaffectedbycramps,thefollowingexerciseshouldbebeneficial: stand abouta metreawayfromawall leanforwardwithyourarmsoutstretchedtotouchthewallwhilekeepingthesolesofyourfeetflatonthefloor holdthispositionforfivesecondsbeforereleasing repeattheexerciseforfiveminutes Forthebestresults,youshouldrepeatthisexercisethreetimesaday,includingonesessionjustbeforeyougotobed. Ifyoufindtheseexercisesusefulyoucan carryondoingthemforaslongasyouareableto. Painkillers Ifyouhavelegpainthatpersistsafteranepisodeofcramping,anover-the-counterpainkiller,suchasparacetamoloribuprofenmayhelpreducethepain. Quinine Quininewasoriginallydesignedasamedicationtotreatmalaria.Subsequentresearchhasfoundthatitcanalsobemoderatelyeffectiveinreducingthefrequencyoflegcramps. However,thereisasmallchancethatquininemaycauseunpleasantsideeffectsincluding: tinnitus(ringinginyourears) impairedhearing headache  nausea(feelingsick) disturbedvision confusion hotflushes Thrombocytopeniaisa rarerbutmoreseriouscomplicationofquinine.Itoccurswhenthenumberofplateletsinyourblood fallstoadangerouslylowlevel.Plateletshelpthebloodtoclotwhichmeanspeoplewith thrombocytopeniaareatincreasedriskof excessivebleedingsuchas: nosebleeds  bleedinggums bleedinginsidetheeye bleedinginsidetheskullordigestivesystem(bothofwhichcanbefatal) Therehavebeenanumberofreportedcasesofpeopledyingfromthrombocytopeniaaftertakingquininetopreventlegcramps. Nevertakemorethanyourrecommendeddoseofquinine.Anoverdoseofquininecanresultinpermanentblindnessanddeath. Duetothesesmallbutpotentialrisks,yourGPwillonlyprescribequinineifthereisevidencethatthepotentialbenefitoftreatmentoutweighstherisks. Itisrecommendedthatquinineisonlyprescribedwhen: youhavetriedtheexercisetechniquesdiscussedaboveandtheyhaven'thelpedpreventyour legcramps youhavefrequentlegcrampswhichaffectyourqualityoflife Inthesecircumstances,youmaybeprescribedafour-weekcourseofquinine.Afterthistime,ifyouhavenotgainedany benefit,thetreatmentwillbewithdrawn. Ifyouexperience anyofthesideeffectslistedabove,stoptakingquinineimmediatelyandcontactyourGP.  AddPagetoInfoForMe Share ClickheretosharethispageonFacebook(Thiswillopenanewwindow). Tweet ClickheretosharethispageonTwitter(Thiswillopenanewwindow). Print Clickheretoprintthispage(Thiswillopenyourprintoptionsinanewwindow).