Abstract
Background. Spasticity is prevalent and disabling in persons with multiple sclerosis (MS), and the development of the Multiple Sclerosis Spasticity Scale-88 (MSSS-88) provides an opportunity for examining the perceived impact of spasticity and its association with gait in this population. Purpose. This study examined the association between the perceived impact of spasticity and spatio-temporal parameters of gait in persons with MS. Methods. The sample included 44 adults with MS who completed the MSSS-88 and 4 walking trials on a 26-foot GAITRiteTM electronic walkway for measurement of spatio-temporal components of gait including velocity, cadence, base of support, step time, single support, double support, and swing phase. Results. The overall MSSS-88 score was significantly associated with velocity (r = −0.371), cadence (r = −0.306), base of support (r = 0.357), step time (r = 0.305), single leg support (r = −0.388), double leg support (r = 0.379), and swing phase (r = −0.386). Conclusions. The perceived impact of spasticity coincides with alterations of the spatio-temporal parameters of gait in MS. This indicates that subsequent interventions might target a decrease in spasticity or its perceived impact as an approach for improving mobility in MS.
Highlights
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an inflammatory, neurodegenerative disease of the central nervous system (CNS)
This body of research indicates that spasticity and its perceived impact are associated with worse mobility, and our data further indicate that the perception of spasticity and its burden might represent an important target of gait rehabilitation as gait is the physical manifestation of walking
Our study is different from previous study [9, 15] in that we measured the patient’s perspective on spasticity and its impact on gait kinematics, whereas previous studies included clinical methods of measuring spasticity and its impact on ambulatory performance
Summary
Spasticity is prevalent and disabling in persons with multiple sclerosis (MS), and the development of the Multiple Sclerosis Spasticity Scale-88 (MSSS-88) provides an opportunity for examining the perceived impact of spasticity and its association with gait in this population. This study examined the association between the perceived impact of spasticity and spatio-temporal parameters of gait in persons with MS. The sample included 44 adults with MS who completed the MSSS-88 and 4 walking trials on a 26-foot GAITRiteTM electronic walkway for measurement of spatio-temporal components of gait including velocity, cadence, base of support, step time, single support, double support, and swing phase. The overall MSSS-88 score was significantly associated with velocity (r = −0.371), cadence (r = −0.306), base of support (r = 0.357), step time (r = 0.305), single leg support (r = −0.388), double leg support (r = 0.379), and swing phase (r = −0.386). The perceived impact of spasticity coincides with alterations of the spatio-temporal parameters of gait in MS.
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