ABSTRACT
Fatigue is one of the most common and important disabling symptoms in multiple sclerosis [MS] patients. Fatigue in patients could be due to neuroimmunology, disability secondary to the disease process, muscular fatigue due to spasticity, drugs and problems such as depression and sleep disorders. In order to evaluate the prevalence and degree of fatigue severity in MS patients and to determine some influencing factors, we studied sixty patients with definite MS in Iran and assessed fatigue [According to FSS score] and also some factors such as depression [According to BDI score], disability status [according to EDSS score] in them. In our 60 patients the range of age was 20-24 years. 73% of the patients were female. In 70% of the patients clinical course of MS was compatible with Relapsing-Remitting type and in 30% secondary progressive form. The prevalence of fatigue [According to FSS] was very high; exactly 100% but only 10% of the patients had self-complaint of fatigue. There are some correlations between fatigue and presence of disability [according to EDSS], depression and age of the patients. Fatigue was more frequent in Secondary Progressive form of MS. We didn't find any correlations between fatigue and sex, duration of the disease, the rate of attacks during the first year of the disease, using MS-specific drugs and fatigue modifying drugs in the patients. It seems that fatigue is more frequent in MS Iranian patients than it has been thought. The correlation between fatigue and depression and degree of disability in patients should alert physicians in considering proper treatment of depression and prevent the progression of MS in the patients as much as possible