# RestEaze: A Novel Wearable Device and Mobile Application to Improve the Diagnosis and Management of Restless Legs Syndrome in Patients with Alzheimer's Disease

> **NIH NIH R43** · TANZEN MEDICAL, INC. · 2022 · $500,709

## Abstract

Project Abstract
Millions of patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) suffer from sleep disturbances that significantly
degrade their quality of life and amplifies the heavy emotional burden on caregivers. Restless
Legs Syndrome (RLS) is likely a factor for the sleep disturbance in these patients, however, RLS
is currently difficult to diagnose, particularly in patients with AD. The diagnosis is made clinically
with subjective, patient reports and the symptoms themselves are variable across individuals.
Thus, patients with AD who may already have difficulty with verbal expression are especially
vulnerable to being misdiagnosed. Furthermore, recent studies suggest that nighttime agitations
(a particularly troublesome symptom of AD that leads to early institutionalization) may be a
manifestation of undiagnosed and therefore unmanaged RLS. RestEaze is an ankle-worn
wearable technology and mobile application developed by Tanzen Medical Inc to measure leg
movements during sleep that are highly related to RLS and can serve as an objective biomarker
of the condition. The device is industrially designed to be comfortably worn by the patient and
washable to permit extended, nightly use. The mobile application is easy to use by the patient (or
caregiver) to interact with and store data from the device. The read-out provided to the clinician
provides clear, actionable information that quantifies the patients’ leg movements during sleep in
reference to American Academy of Sleep Medicine standards. In sum, RestEaze directly
addresses a significant unmet medical need by providing a technology that can substantially
improve the diagnosis and subsequent management of RLS in patients with AD. The use of this
technology is expected to improve the quality of life for patients with AD and their caregivers by
directly addressing their sleep disturbance and preventing the need for early institutionalization
or other ancillary medical services.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10384159
- **Project number:** 1R43AG076092-01
- **Recipient organization:** TANZEN MEDICAL, INC.
- **Principal Investigator:** Justin Brooks
- **Activity code:** R43 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $500,709
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-03-15 → 2023-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10384159

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10384159, RestEaze: A Novel Wearable Device and Mobile Application to Improve the Diagnosis and Management of Restless Legs Syndrome in Patients with Alzheimer's Disease (1R43AG076092-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10384159. Licensed CC0.

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