Quality of Life in Multiple Sclerosis Patients: Yemeni Patients' Experience Using (MSQOL-54) Questionnaire

• Published in: Multiple sclerosis and related disorders 2023-12, Vol.80, p.105279, Article 105279
• Main Authors: Elawfi, Bashaer, Al-Sharjabi, Hadeel Fuad, Al-Geballah, Mohammed, Al-Daba, Ghaida'a Mujahed, Meqdam, Amgad Hussein, Al-Yousefi, Shaima Saleem, Al-Dumaini, Hamdan Hamood
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 2211-0348
• DOI: 10.1016/j.msard.2023.105279

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a serious public health concern that affects millions of people worldwide, with the number varying substantially between regions and populations. Multiple sclerosis is considered one of the leading causes of disability, so assessing quality of life is critical for improving medical decisions, rehabilitation, and nursing. There has been increased interest in the quality of life linked with multiple sclerosis disease, however, most research so far has been conducted in developed countries. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to evaluate the quality of life and to determine the association between demographic variables and MSQOL-54 physical and Mental Health Composite scores of Yemeni patients with multiple sclerosis. All patients registered with Yemeni Association for the Multiple sclerosis Patients Care (YAMSPC), and had confirmed diagnosis with multiple sclerosis by a neurologist were asked to participate in the study. After excluding patients under the age of 18 and those with any other chronic diseases (e.g. Diabetes, Hypertension, Depression, etc.), a total of 96 patients participated in the study with a response rate of 57%. The MSQOL-54 questionnaire was used to measure quality of life, and data were collected by interviewing each participant. Ethical approval was obtained from Sana'a University Faculty of Medicine & Health Science. The 96 patients were mainly young (less than 40 years old), married, unemployed and 72% female. MSQOL-54 results showed that the quality of life overall median score was 36.9 (28.1-53.1), Physical Health Composite was 37.7 (27-52.8) and Mental Health Composite was 38.9 (25-55). We noticed that patients with limb weakness symptoms had lower scores in both physical and mental health domains of 30.2 and 29.6 respectively (p