ABSTRACT
MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS [MS] is a chronic disease with relapsing and remitting periods. As it can make disabilities in patients' physical activities, MS can affect patients' psycho-social status to various degrees. The aim of this study was to evaluate attitudes of patients with MS towards the impacts of the disease on their social and sexual activities. One hundred patients with a diagnosis of MS hospitalized in Az'zahra Hospital in 2006-2007 were selected through a simple randomized sampling. Data was collected using Beck Depression Inventory [BDI] as well as two other researcher-made questionnaires to assess patients' attitudes. Data was analyzed by SPSS-12 software using t-test and ANOVA. The mean score of patients' attitude toward the adverse impacts of MS on their social and sexual activities were 23.64 and 14.23 respectively [the mean scores of the tests are 24 for impacts on social activities and 12 for impacts on sexual activities]. According to the results, patients with MS believed that the disease has had a moderate impact on their social activities but a relatively high adverse impact on their sexual ones. Patients with MS viewed the disease as moderately disturbing for their social activities and highly interfering with their sexual life. There were significant differences in this regard according to sex and depression co-morbidity