neurologic disorders
Muscle Cramps
Prevention of Muscle Cramps
Measures to prevent cramps include the following: Gently stretching the muscles before exercising or going to bed Drinking plenty of fluids (particularly beverages that containpotassium) after exercise Not consuming stimulants (eg,caffeine,nicotine,ephedrine,pseudoephedrine) Not smoking Stretching the gastrocnemius muscles (runner’s stretch) is often useful. A person stands with one leg forward and bent at the knee and the other leg behind and the knee straight―a lunge position. The hands can be placed on the wall for balance. Both heels remain on the floor. The knee of the front leg is bent further until a stretch is felt along the back of the other leg. The greater the distance between the two feet and the more the front knee is bent, the greater the stretch. The stretch is held for 30 seconds and repeated 5 times. The set of stretches is repeated on the other side. has been effective in some trials but is no longer recommended because of occasional serious adverse effects (eg, arrhythmias, thrombocytopenia, thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura [TTP] and hemolytic-uremic syndrome [HUS], severe allergic reactions [ Prevention references ]). 1.El-Tawil S, Al Musa T, Haseeb Valli H, et al:Quininefor muscle cramps.Cochrane Database Syst RevApr 5 (4):CD005044, 2015. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD005044.pub3 2.Kuwabara S, Misawa S, Tamura N, et al: The effects ofmexiletineon excitability properties of human median motor axons.Clin Neurophysiol116 (2):284–289, 2015. doi: 10.1016/j.clinph.2004.08.014 