Copyright: ©Author(s) 2026. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license. No commercial re-use. See permissions. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc.
World J Psychiatry. Aug 19, 2026; 16(8): 120880
Published online Aug 19, 2026. doi: 10.5498/wjp.120880
Published online Aug 19, 2026. doi: 10.5498/wjp.120880
Olanzapine-induced restless legs syndrome: Two case reports
Hong-Liang Li, Department of Clinic, Jurong Mental Hospital, Zhenjiang 212400, Jiangsu Province, China
Author contributions: Li HL contributed to the conceptualization, methodology, data curation, original draft writing, visualization, and formal analysis; the author consented to manuscript submission to the journal, and authorized the latest report.
AI contribution statement: The authors take full responsibility and accountability for all content of this manuscript, including any portions for which AI tools were used as assistive technologies. All AI-assisted outputs were carefully reviewed, validated, and approved by the authors. AI tools were not used to generate original scientific data, perform independent scientific analyses, or draw scientific conclusions.
Informed consent statement: Written informed consent was obtained from the guardian for participation in this study.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The author reports no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
CARE Checklist (2016) statement: The authors have read the CARE Checklist (2016), and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the CARE Checklist (2016).
Corresponding author: Hong-Liang Li, Academic Fellow, Lecturer, Department of Clinic, Jurong Mental Hospital, No. S243 Hongjing Road, Jurong City, Zhenjiang 212400, Jiangsu Province, China. 291413125@qq.com
Received: March 11, 2026
Revised: June 10, 2026
Accepted: July 6, 2026
Published online: August 19, 2026
Processing time: 129 Days and 3.2 Hours
Revised: June 10, 2026
Accepted: July 6, 2026
Published online: August 19, 2026
Processing time: 129 Days and 3.2 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: Olanzapine-induced restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a rare adverse drug reaction with an incidence of only 0.5%-2.3%, easily ignored in psychiatric practice. This article reports two elderly female schizophrenia patients complicated with multiple physical illnesses who developed typical RLS after olanzapine administration. We analyze its possible mechanisms related to dopaminergic dysfunction and abnormal iron metabolism, summarize individualized dose adjustment and antipsychotic switching strategies, and remind clinicians to actively screen RLS symptoms during olanzapine treatment.