Balance, Trunk Impairment and Fear of Falling in Multiple Sclerosis Patients With Incontinence

Ankara Yildirim Beyazıt University

Status

Completed

Conditions

Multiple Sclerosis

Incontinence

Physical Therapy

Treatments

Other: Balance

Other: Fear of falling

Other: Incontinence Severity

Other: Trunk impairment

Study type

Observational

Funder types

Other

Identifiers

NCT03945006

Details and patient eligibility

About

The aim of the present study was to examine balance, trunk impairment, and fear of falling in MS patients with incontinence. Clinical symptoms of the MS patients are heterogenous, and they vary according to the lesion levels and the duration and the type of the disease. In the neurologic group,especially in MS patients, incontinence is observed even at early stages.

Pelvic floor muscles contribute to continence by stabilizing the bladder neck and increasing the intraurethral pressure. Furthermore, they mechanically support the spine and the pelvis.This mechanical support is attained through an increase in sacroiliac joint stiffness and intra-abdominal pressure changes, which are important for spinal control. Along with incontinence, this mechanical support deteriorates resulting in some problems. By this way, postural function of pelvic floor muscles may alter in individuals with incontinence, and thus, lumbopelvic stabilization may be negatively affected. In addition, the activity of trunk muscles changes in individuals with incontinence, which may result in spinal movement and affect the posture. Therefore, balance disorders may develop. Postural sways caused by balance disorders and the decrease in postural corrections have been listed among risk the factors associated with falling.

When literature is examined, there exists no study examining the effects of incontinence on balance, trunk impairment, and fear of falling in MS patients. For all these reasons, investigators think that incontinence in MS patients has an effect on balance, trunk impairment, and fear of fall.

Full description

This study was aimed to investigate balance, trunk impairment, and fear of falling in MS patients with and without incontinence.

The study was conducted in 35 MS patients with an age range of 24-58 years. The patients were divided into two groups based on the occurrence of incontinence. A neurologic examination was performed using the EDSS by a neurologist.

Incontinence was measured with the Incontinence Severity Index (ISI), balance was measured with a Technobody® stabilometric platform, and fear of falling was measured with the Falls Efficacy Scale (FES).

Enrollment

36 patients

Sex

All

Ages

24 to 58 years old

Volunteers

No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

Clinical diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis Disease
The level of disability should be between 0.5-4 according to EDSS
having a score of 24 or more in the Mini Mental Status Test

Exclusion criteria

Patients with acute attacks (six months prior to the study)
Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score of less tahn 25 points
History of shoulder injury, surgery, medical problems or other neurological disorders in any of the participants