Burden of multiple sclerosis: impact on the patient, family and society

Abstract

BackgroundMultiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic autoimmune neurological disease that significantly influences the health-related quality of life of individuals, their families, and society. AimThis study aimed to identify the burden of MS on patients’ and caregivers’ quality of lif e. MethodsA total of 104 individuals were included consisting of 60 patients with MS (pwMS) diagnosed according to the revised McDonald criteria and 44 caregivers. After collecting the detailed history of all participants, complete general and neurological examinations were performed. Work-related difficulties of the patients including physical, cognitive, and psychological barriers were studied using the 23-item Multiple Sclerosis Work Difficulties Questionnaire (MSWDQ-23), and caregivers were asked to complete the Caregiver Strain Index (CSI). ResultsPwMS with higher disabilities have higher statistically significant cognitive impairment and work-related difficulties. In addition, CSI has a significant positive correlation with the age of pwMS (r = 0.48, P = 0.001) and the disability of illness (r = 0.81, P<0.001), and a significant negative correlation with the cognitive affection (r=-0.48, P<0.001), thereby indicating, a significant association between the burden on caregivers and workplace problems assessed by the MSWDQ-23 score reported by PwMS (r = 0.74, P = 0.01). ConclusionAs MS is a debilitating disease affecting the psychological and physical conditions of the patients, as well as work-related abilities, it significantly affects both patients’ and caregivers’ quality of life.