Background: Restless legs syndrome is one of the most common sleep disorders that decreases the quality of life. Diabetic patients suffer from restless legs syndrome more than the others. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between restless legs syndrome and the quality of sleep in type II diabetes.

Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, type II diabetic patients (n=108) referred to the Saqqez diabetes unit were selected through purposive sampling. Data were collected using screening questionnaires for restless legs syndrome including Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI) and Epworth sleepiness scale (ESS) and were analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlation coefficient and independent T tests.

Results: The mean sleep quality scores in the presence and absence of restless legs syndrome were 8.1±0.6 and 5.5± 4.4, respectively and there was a significant difference in the quality of sleep between the two groups (P=0.001). Forty-two percent of samples suffered from restless legs syndrome and other sleep disorders.

Conclusion: Considering the high incidence of sleep disorders in diabetic patients and also the lack of proper diagnosis of restless legs syndrome, using various screening methods for the diagnosis of restless legs syndrome is necessary for diabetic patients.