Identifying Symptom Co-Occurrence in Persons With Multiple Sclerosis

Pamela K. Newland, Louise H. Flick, Florian P. Thomas and William D. Shannon

Clinical Nursing Research, 2014, vol. 23, issue 5, 529-543

Abstract: Patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) experience a myriad of symptoms. There is some evidence that symptoms may co-occur, or happen in particular combinations. Yet most existing studies focus on single symptoms and practitioners make a priori care decisions based on individual symptoms alone. We examined symptom co-occurrences in patients with relapsing–remitting MS (RRMS), collecting qualitative and quantitative data (mixed methods; N = 140). Content analysis revealed fatigue, heat intolerance, numbness, balance problems, and leg weakness as the most common symptoms. Factor analysis revealed the following factors: urinary, problems with balance, vision, heat, depression, and sleep. These preliminary findings indicate co-occurrence of several disabling symptoms from the overall self-report MS-Related Symptom Scale and 3-month recall. This information will guide health care professionals in developing targeted interventions and improve outcomes.

Keywords: multiple sclerosis; symptom co-occurrence; nursing interventions (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:clnure:v:23:y:2014:i:5:p:529-543

DOI: 10.1177/1054773813497221

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