Fatigue and Oropharyngeal Dysphagia in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis

Abstract

Multiple Sclerosis is a disease that affects the Central Nervous System, it is prevalent in women and its evolution and the severity of symptoms are variable, affecting each individual differently. Clinical manifestations depend on the location of the lesion and tissue injury and patients may present a series of symptoms, including fatigue and dysphagia. Fatigue in Multiple Sclerosis is multidimensional, and dysphagia is one of the symptoms that can be linked to fatigue. Objective: To identify and correlate symptoms of fatigue and risk of dysphagia in patients with Multiple Sclerosis. Methods: Descriptive cross-sectional study in which patients with a diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis treated at the Neurology Department of a University Hospital were included. Patients were assessed using the MFIS-BR scale and the DYMUS-BR questionnaire related to fatigue and swallowing, respectively. Results: 74 patients were included. There was a prevalence of females (56.8%) and age over 60 years (95.9%). The most frequent form of Multiple Sclerosis was Remitting-Recurrent (81.1%), the risk of dysphagia was identified in 19 patients (25.7%) and the presence of fatigue symptoms in 32 patients (43.2%). There was a positive and weak correlation between fatigue symptoms and risk of dysphagia (r <0.5). Conclusion: Although weak, there was a positive correlation between fatigue symptoms and risk of dysphagia. The greater the degree of fatigue, the greater the risk of changes in swallowing.