الفهرس | Only 14 pages are availabe for public view |
Abstract Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an inflammatory disease in which the insulating covers of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord are damaged. This damage disrupts the ability of parts of the nervous system to communicate, resulting in a wide range of signs and symptoms, (Compston et al., 2008) including physical, mental, and psychiatric problems (Murray et al., 2012). In fact, symptoms of depression, fatigue and associated disabilities can be severe enough and require for medical assessment and intervention. Moreover poor quality of life is greatly influenced by depression, fatigue and associated disabilities. MS affects about 25.000 patients in Egypt (Eltamawy, 2010). Yet very few studies are done in psychiatric complication of MS in Egypt and the Arab countries. So this study was conducted to shed light on understanding the correlates of cognitive impairment in MS patients. Thirty Patients diagnosed as MS were selected from ElDemerdash Hospital & Damanhur Teaching Hospital aiming to assess general cognitive ability, the degree of physical disabilities, the executive functions, the severity of depression, memory functioning, the quality of life & their correlation with each other. Patients were compared to 15 age& sex matched healthy controls. Thirty Egyptian patients included in this study distributed according to gender into 10 males (33.3%) and 20 females (66.7%). Males had poor sexual satisfaction. Cognitive profile was found to be impaired especially memory and the performance subscales & IQ. Also the executive functions were found to be impaired. Depression detected in (83.3%) of patients with varying degrees. Depression affected negatively the quality of patient’s life through mental health, pain, bladder control, bowel control, social support& sexual satisfaction. Quality of life was found to be impaired by neurological disabilities detected by EDSS especially with increased pain sensation ,Bladder dysfunction, bowel dysfunction, visual impairment& mental health as all impaired by neurological disabilities. The results comparable to prior studies, and highlights the importance of detecting and managing depressive symptoms, cognitive deficits& the disturbed quality of life for MS patients. |