[Multiple sclerosis : rehabilitation and long-term course]. / Multiple Sklerose : Rehabilitation und Langzeitverlauf.

BACKGROUND: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a highly complex disabling disease with variable pathology and clinical course. Progressive multisystemic involvement of the central nervous system leads to complex functional disturbances and disabilities. Despite disease-modifying therapies and pharmacological symptomatic treatment, the majority of MS patients develop progressive impairments in functions, activities and quality of life in the long-term. Rehabilitation interventions aim at improving symptoms and functional deficits and reducing the negative impact on activities and social participation. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the impact and value of rehabilitation interventions in MS. METHODS: Specific literature search in PubMed. RESULTS: Good evidence exists for a positive effect of various rehabilitation interventions and multidisciplinary programs. Long-term prognosis is very variable and depends on various influencing factors. Due to an often unpredictable change of disease activity and the high variability, accurate prediction of long-term prognosis in individual MS cases is still challenging. CONCLUSION: Rehabilitation measures should be considered in an early phase of the disease for maintaining functional abilities and reducing the risk of progression of disabilities. Assignment to specific interventions and setting of rehabilitation depend on disease-specific and personal factors and specific goals. Monosyndromic or oligosyndromic impairments in the early phases of the disease can be approached by targeted monodisciplinary ambulatory interventions, whereas more severe and complex disabilities generally necessitate a more intensive multidisciplinary rehabilitation.

Retinal nerve fiber layer thickness, brain atrophy, and disability in multiple sclerosis patients.

OBJECTIVE: To study the relationship between retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness and brain atrophy using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with bicaudate ratio (BCR) in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) with different levels of disease severity. We also assessed whether RNFL thickness correlated with Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) score. METHODS: The participants consisted of 88 patients with MS and 59 age- and sex-matched healthy control subjects. Eleven patients had clinically isolated syndrome (CIS), 68 patients had relapsing-remitting MS (RR-MS), and 9 patients had secondary progressive MS. Patients and controls were evaluated using optical coherence tomography (OCT, Cirrus) and scanning laser polarimetry with variable corneal compensation (GDx VCC). Patients underwent the same brain MRI scanning protocol. Disability was evaluated according to the EDSS. The BCR was calculated by dividing the minimum intercaudate distance by brain width along the same level. RESULTS: The BCR was higher in patients with MS (0.12 ± 0.03) than in controls (0.08 ± 0.009) (P < 0.001). OCT average RNFL thickness in patients with MS was significantly lower (84.51 ± 14.27 µm) than in control subjects (98.44 ± 6.83 µm). BCR was correlated with OCT average RNFL thickness (r = -0.48, P = 0.002) in patients with MS without optic neuritis. Significant correlations were found between average RNFL thickness and EDSS (r = -0.43, P = 0.003). Additionally, there were correlations between BCR with GDx parameters in patients with MS without optic neuritis. CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that RNFL thickness correlates with BCR and with MS subtypes. Additionally, our study indicates that OCT is better suited for MS assessment than GDx. We conclude that the damage of retinal axons appears related to brain damage in patients with MS.

Characteristics of disabilities in patients with subacute myelo-optico-neuropathy living at home: satisfaction in daily life and short form-36.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to investigate the characteristics of disabilities in patients with subacute myelo-optico-neuropathy (SMON), and to reveal whether the satisfaction in daily life (SDL) or short form-36 (SF-36) correlated with these disabilities. METHOD: The subjects consisted of 97 patients with SMON living at home, who were mailed a questionnaire concerning the patient's profile, SMON severity (disability scale for SMON), basic activities of daily living (self-rating Barthel Index, SR-BI), lifestyle (self-rating Frenchay Activities Index, SR-FAI), SDL and SF-36. A relationship with SDL, SF-36 and disabilities was analysed by using Spearman's rank correlation coefficient. RESULTS: Fifty-eight out of 97 patients with SMON responded, and their mean age was 76.1 years. The mean of SMON severity was 8.0; SR-BI, 70.8; SR-FAI, 11.1; SDL, 27.3; physical component summary of SF-36 (PCS), 26.3; mental component summary of SF-36 (MCS), 39.5. The SMON group had significantly lower scores for SDL than those for the age- and sex ratio- matched elderly persons. With respect to SDL, a significant correlation was observed with SMON severity, SR-BI, SR-FAI, SDL, and PCS and MCS of SF-36, but no significant correlation was observed regarding SMON severity and either the PCS or MCS. CONCLUSIONS: The subjective domains of the quality of life in patients with SMON were observed to have decreased. SDL was considered to closely reflect the characteristics of the disabilities observed in patients with SMON.

Disability and lifestyle of subacute myelo-optico-neuropathy and stroke patients and elderly persons living at home: A comparison of the Barthel Index score and the Frenchay Activities Index score.

To evaluate subacute myelo-optico-neuropathy (SMON) and stroke patients and elderly persons by using the Barthel Index (BI) and Frenchay Activities Index (FAI) and to reveal the disability and lifestyle of SMON patients, cross sectional comparison study was performed. Forty SMON patients, 92 age-matched stroke patients with the same level of BI score and 92 age-matched elderly persons living at home were subjected in this study. The SMON patients responded to a self-administered BI and FAI at their yearly health counseling, and the score of the BI and FAI of stroke outpatients and elderly persons were sampled from the databases. The differences in age distribution and sex ratio between the three groups were analyzed by the chi2 test and one-way analysis of variance, respectively, and the differences in BI and FAI between the three groups were analyzed by the Kruskal-Wallis test, followed by the Mann-Whitney test. The BI total score of the SMON patients was the same as that of the stroke patients and lower than that of the elderly persons. The 4 items of self-care index and 2 items of mobility index in the SMON patients were rated significantly higher and lower than the stroke patients respectively, and all items except eating and toileting in the SMON patients were rated lower than elderly persons (Mann-Whitney test, P < 0.05). The FAI scores in the SMON patients were lower than the elderly persons and higher than the stroke patients. These results suggest that the scores of the BI and FAI differentiated the features of disability and lifestyle of the SMON patients from those of stroke patients and elderly persons.

[Possibilities of special correction in restoration of reading capacity in poorly sighted patients]. / Vozmozhnosti spetsial'noi korrektsii v vosstanovlenii sposobnosti k chteniiu slabovidiashchikh.

A total of 1012 patients aged 6-94 years (31.9% aged under 19 years, 25.2% aged 20-60 years, and 42.9% aged over 60) with poor sight, 83% of whom could not read book type, were examined. Corrected far visual acuity was 0.03-0.35, in 52.7% of these 0.1-0.2 and in 38.2% less than 0.1. The most incident diseases were retinal and optic nerve disease (40.6%), complicated myopia (15%), congenital ocular diseases (17.3%), aphakia (9.8%), and glaucoma (7.9%). In order to select correction, near visual acuity, reading acuity, and reading speed were evaluated. Optic magnifiers, such as hyperocular eyeglasses, magnifying glasses of different types (supporting, applied, special, manual, and telescopic) were used for correction. Four-fold magnifiers were prescribed most often (67.3%). Optic magnifiers allowed reading in 78% cases. The decisive factors of the device efficiency were reading acuity (no more than 48 points) and reading speed (at least 200 signs/min). Ocular disease, visual field status, patient's age and psychosomatic state, and technological characteristics of the device are also important factors.

Prognosis of SMON patients.

The following points have become clear on prognosis of SMON through the analysis of 981 cases collected. 1) The prognosis of the old whose ages were 60 year old or over is not favorable, when compared with that of the young. However, there is no prognostic difference between male and female. 2) The cummulative death rate of SMON which was calculated by the life table method is approx twice as much as the generally expected value. 3) Approximately 80% of the patients showed some sort of improvement 7 to 12 months after the onset of the disease. The rate for 13 months or over if nearly the same. 4) The abdominal symptoms found at the time of the onset of the disease decreased markedly in the course of the disease. 5) Among neurological symptoms, the prognosis of motor disorders is more favorable. The complete recovery of sensory disturbances was extremely rare, but approx 60% showed more or less favorable in the course of the illness. Approximately 40% of the cases with visual disturbances completely recovered or showed favorable improvement, whereas 9% of them became worse. As for the prognosis of visual impairment, it is more serious than other symptoms. 6) The patients who had been administered clioquinol over long period displayed a higher rate of severe or moderate motor, sensory and visual disturbances, compared with the group with short-term administration of clioquinol. The death rate was also higher in the former group. 7) The rate of relapse as a whole was 16.7% and 68% of them was seen within 18 months after the onset. There is no difference in relapse according to sex. There was seen a high rate of relapse in the group of longterm administration of clioquinol. 8) A 10.5% of total cases were either unable to walk or in need of assistance in walking, whereas the rate of patients who cannot get dressed or who cannot defecate unassisted was lower. 9) Approximately 65% returned to the job in 12 months or more after the onset. The employment rate was not different according to sex, whereas it was lower along with the age advances. 10) Approximately 20% were not received medical treatment. The rate of non-treated patients is higher in the younger patients. The rate of hospitalized patients was higher in the older patients.