Abstract
Background and objectives. Fatigue is one of the most common symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS). The aim of this study was to determine the presence of fatigue in MS patients in Latvia and its relation to life style factors, neurological disability and depression.Material and methods. This cross-sectional study included 117 participants (44 patients with MS and 73 healthy control group). Applied research instruments were: Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), and the general questionnaire for the collection of socio-demographic, life style habits and clinical data constructed for the purposes of this study.Results. Mean FSS score was 3.9±1.9 in MS group. 26 (59.1%) patients had FSS score of 3.8 or more and were classified as a fatigue group (MSF) while 18 (40.9%) patients had FSS of 3.7 or less and were classified as a non-fatigue (MSNF) group. There was statistically significant difference between MSF and MSNF groups considering PHQ-9 score (p=0.019), FSS score (p<0.001) and EDSS score (p<0.001). Significant correlations of fatigue with depression (r=0.48, p=0.001), fatigue with neurological disability (r=0.49, p=0.001) and fatigue with smoking (r=0.29, p=0.054) were confirmed.Conclusions. Fatigue is a common symptom in MS patients in Latvia. This study supports significant association between fatigue and clinical factors (disability, depression) and modifiable lifestyle factor – smoking.
Highlights
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic, immune-mediated demyelinating disease of the central nervous system (CNS)
Fatigue is a common symptom in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients in Latvia
We analyzed the association between fatigue and lifestyle factors that might minimize or exacerbate fatigue and found a tendency in our study which showed that smoking patients were more fatigued than non-smokers (p=0.054). 71.4% of smoking patients were fatigued while only 53.3% of nonsmokers were fatigued
Summary
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic, immune-mediated demyelinating disease of the central nervous system (CNS). It affects 2.3 million people worldwide, and is the most common cause of non-traumatic disability in young adults [1]. In 2015 there were 1801 patients registered in Latvia with MS diagnosis. Fatigue is one of the most common symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS). Thirty percent of patients present with fatigue, and it affects up to 90% of patients at some point. Secondary fatigue is not an alternative diagnosis but may rather coexist and can contribute to the overall fatigue, but if recognized, secondary fatigue can be minimized [7, 8]. Fatigue may arise independently of depression, or it can be an integral symptom
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