In early November, a Consumer Reports feature about RLS advertisements seemed to question the validity of RLS as a serious disorder and was also critical of advertisements to treat the disorder, namely those relating to the RLS treatment, Requip. Now, the RLS Foundation has responded to the feature, expressing frustration with the clip.

The Consumer Reports clip features statements such as “Oooh a mystery. Sounds serious. The real mystery? What the heck is restless legs syndrome anyway?”; “Aaah, note the use of impressive initials”; “RLS, sounds official doesn’t it?”; and “Geeez, the side effects are starting to sound worse than the symptoms.”

The letter from Georgianna Bell, executive director of the RLS Foundation, calls into question the “sarcastic tone” of the feature, and she says that not only does she plan to cancel her Consumer Reports subscription but also states, “RLS Foundation plans to encourage all of its members to do the same both on our website, which receives more than 2,000 hits a day, and in our quarterly patient publication and e-mail list.” Read the letter in its entirety here.