1 February 1969 – 31 March 2026
The European and International Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) Study Groups mourn the sudden and unexpected loss of our colleague and friend, Cornelius Bachmann. He was 57 years old.
Cornelius devoted his scientific life to understanding the neurophysiological foundations of RLS. With characteristic intensity, he probed the excitability of cortical, spinal, and peripheral circuits in search of the mechanisms that drive this disorder, and translated those insights into novel stimulation-based therapies. RLS research was not merely his profession; it was his calling. He pursued it with a wholeness of commitment that inspired everyone around him. Beyond his scientific work, he had an extraordinary talent for building patient care infrastructure – most notably a very large sleep diagnostic center including an outpatient unit in Osnabrück, Germany – and gave generously of his time to patients, answering their questions with the same dedication he brought to his research.
That someone so full of energy and purpose could be taken from us so abruptly is a stark reminder of the fragility at the heart of all human life.
Science has lost an original mind. Patients have lost a fierce advocate. We have lost a dear friend.
The EURLSSG and IRLSSG extend their deepest condolences to his family.
Ambra Stefani and John Winkelman
For the EURLSSG and IRLSSG
It is with great sadness we announce the passing of a grand clinician-scientist in sleep medicine & research: Richard P. Allen, PhD. On December 9, 2020, Dr. Allen passed away peacefully with his wife and children by his side. Dr. Allen dedicated the last 30 years to sleep medicine and in particular for the last 20 years to developing the field of movement disorders in sleep and in particular the Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) and period leg movements in sleep (PLMS). Dr. Allen’s family asks that memorial donations are made to both the Restless Legs Syndrome Foundation (RLSF) and International RLS Study Group (IRLSSG).
If you wish to donate to IRLSSG in Memory of Dr. Richard Allen please complete the form below or contact secretary@irlssg.org
Dr. Allen was instrumental in building and fortifying RLS research. Drs. Richard Allen and Christopher J. Earley established and co-directed The Johns Hopkins Center for Restless Legs Syndrome, located at the Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center. He also served as Chair of the medical advisory board for the Restless Legs Syndrome Foundation and International Restless Legs Syndrome Study Group. Additionally, he acted as President of the World Association of Sleep Medicine (now World Sleep Society). Dr. Allen received a bachelors degree in mathematics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and his doctorate in psychology from the University of Cambridge, Cambridge England. He chaired the NIH-RLSF workshop that produced the current diagnostic standard for RLS and has produced clinical standards for RLS diagnoses and evaluation currently used in most RLS clinical trials. He was also a senior editor of the primary text on Movement Disorders in Sleep and a senior field editor for the major international journal for sleep, Sleep Medicine.
In his over 300 peer-reviewed articles, Dr. Allen was a world-renowned sleep expert who published on the topics of sleep-disorders including pioneering work on RLS augmentation, dopamine and IV iron RLS treatments, the iron-dopamine, the iron-glutamate abnormalities of RLS and PLMs. His significant contributions to the field earned him the Sleep Research Society Outstanding Sleep and Circadian Scientist Award in 2020. He was instrumental in the field. He will be missed.
See the World Sleep Society website For more photos and tributes from the Sleep Medicine Community