ABSTRACT
Background: On 11 March 2020, WHO declared COVID-19 has become a pandemic. This had an impact on everyday activity for every person. For special groups such as multiple sclerosis patients, the situation is a little bit confusing. In this study, COVID-19 infection impact on MS patients, willingness for vaccination, percentage of vaccinated patients and adverse effects of different vaccines were investigated. This cross-sectional descriptive study included 160 Egyptian MS patients. Demographic and clinical characteristics of all patients were extracted from their files MS unit archives. All these patients were contacted either by telephone and an oral informed consent was taken or in-person on their scheduled follow-up and informed written consent was taken to join this study. Patients were asked about: COVID-19 infection, severity of infection, and vaccination using a special questionnaire developed by the authors. Results: Only 39 (24.3%) patients have had COVID-19 infection with confirmed diagnosis. Most of infected patients (84.6%) were treated at home with no need for hospital admission. Five patients (12.8%) reported symptom suggestive of relapses after COVID-19 infection. Sixty-five patients (40.6%) were vaccinated against COVID-19. Out of these vaccinated patients, 22 patients (33%) developed adverse events from vaccine. These adverse events were self-limiting and related to local injection site and general manifestations. MS relapse after vaccination was reported in 7.7% of the vaccinated group. Conclusion: Prevalence of COVID-19 infection and severity of infection were equal to general population. Risk of relapse is low either with infection or vaccination. No severe adverse events were reported after vaccination.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: This study aims to determine the effect of multiple sclerosis supportive programs on mothers' self-management during postpartum. STUDY DESIGN: A quasi-experimental, nonequivalent group design was utilized. Primigravida pregnant women between 35-37 weeks of gestation and recently diagnosed with multiple sclerosis participated in two preparation sessions. While the first session during pregnancy was an open conversation about the delivery, the key topics of the second session were the nature of the postpartum cycle and the expected relapses. RESULTS: Seventy pregnant women with multiple sclerosis participated in this research. Results denoted a statistical difference between both groups regarding self-management in 6th and 12th weeks postpartum. The improvements were related to mothers' relationships with their health care providers and knowledge and information about multiple sclerosis during this transitional phase. On the other hand, there were no differences among both groups related to their levels of functional activities at 6th and 12th weeks postpartum. Although there was a slight deterioration in motor ability score among both groups at 12th week's postpartum, 54.3% of the intervention group vs. 49% of the non-intervention group reported 100% absolute independence. Moreover, the total relapses in the three-month postpartum ranged between 1-6, increasing the frequency of relapses during the three-month postpartum with no statistically significant differences between both groups. CONCLUSION: Conducting a multidisciplinary program to follow and counsel mothers with MS helps enhance self-management throughout the three-month postpartum period.
