DIAGNOSIS CHECKLIST
for Restlessness

Why: to determine if acute or chronic.

Why: Causes of restless behavior vary with age.

Why: e.g. sleep problems, insomnia, boredom, impatience, anxiety and nervousness may cause restlessness.

Why: e.g. risk factors for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and conduct disorders in children include disrupted childhood care, social disadvantage, lack of warm caring family, family violence (physical or sexual abuse) and antisocial peer group exposure.

Why: Many physical disorders may be associated with restlessness including hyperthyroidism, brain damage, cluster headache, croup, liver failure and Alzheimer's disease.

Why: e.g. Akathisia is a state of restlessness and overactivity produced by some anti-psychotic medications.

Why: Certain psychiatric conditions may be associated with restlessness including bipolar affective disorder, depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Why: chronic alcohol abuse may cause Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome which is associated with restlessness.

Why: e.g. amphetamines and cocaine may cause restlessness.

Why: e.g. impulsive over activity, restlessness, irritability, poor concentration and school learning problems.

Why: e.g. reduced appetite, nausea, vomiting, blue line on the gums, constipation, abdominal cramps and restless hyperactive behavior. In severe cases it may cause eventual seizures and impaired consciousness.

Why: e.g. episodes of depression (often psychotic in intensity) and at other times episodes of psychotic excitement (mania or hypomania). Symptoms of psychotic excitement may include elevation of mood, hyperactivity, grandiose ideas, irritability, disinhibition (which affects social, sexual and financial behavior), rapid speech and racing thought, delusions (persecutory or grandiose) and sometimes hallucinations.

Why: e.g. nervousness, shakiness, tremor, restlessness, hyperactivity, irritability, insomnia, poor concentration, heart palpitations, racing heart, sweating, dizziness, diarrhea, lump in throat and frequency of urination.

Why: e.g. depressed mood, crying spells, anhedonia (loss of interest or pleasure), increase or decrease in appetite (usually decreased), weight loss or gain, insomnia or increased sleeping (usually early morning waking), fatigue, loss of energy, feelings of worthlessness, feelings of excessive guilt, poor concentration, difficulty making decisions, low libido, thoughts of death or suicide attempt. Some depressed people exhibit marked agitation and restlessness which may take the form of poorly organized but purposeful activities, in which the person starts the same activity frequently, becomes distracted, starts an alternative activity, and so on.

Why: e.g. impaired memory, impaired judgement and thinking, impaired verbal fluency and impaired ability to perform complex tasks. Personality may change, impulse control may be lost and personal care deteriorates. People with dementia may also have psychiatric symptoms such as delusions, paranoid ideas, hallucinations, mood disturbance and behavioral disturbance. Restlessness may be a feature of dementia.

Why: e.g. relentlessly progressive course of dementia, chorea (continuous flow of jerky movements, flitting randomly from one limb or part to another), personality change ( especially irritability), epilepsy. Restlessness and agitation may be a feature of Huntington's disease.

Why: e.g. intolerance to heat, sweating of hands, muscle weakness, increased appetite, weight loss, heart palpitations, loose bowel motions, emotional lability, agitation and restlessness.