Tehran University Medical Journal

Background: Body pain in multiple sclerosis (MS) is a common phenomenon that can create or exacerbate by different parameters of clinical, psychological and demographic. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between parameters of clinical (fatigue, clinical course, body mass index and duration), psychological (depression, anxiety and stress) and demographic (age, gender, marital status and education) characters with multiple sclerosis patient’s body pain.

Methods: This cross-sectional study has been performed in the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Guilan Province and Imam Reza Specialized and Sub-specialized Clinic, Rasht City, Iran during June to February 2010. In this study 162 patients with MS were selected by consecutive sampling. We used the clinical and demographic variables inventory, body pain subscale of the health survey questionnaire, depression, anxiety and stress scale and fatigue severity scale along with identical analog-spring balance. The data were analyzed by Pearson correlation coefficient and point bi-serial, one-way analysis of variance, Gabriel test and stepwise multiple regression.

Results: The findings showed that patients who scored 3 or higher in relapses experienced significantly more body pain than patients who scored 1-2 times of relapses (P= 0.031). In the meantime, significant differences were not found between the two groups of patients with a score of 3 or higher in relapses and non-relapse and between non-relapse patients and with a score 1-2 times of relapses in terms of body pain. Also, significant differences were not found in different groups of hospitalization in terms of body pain. However, anxiety and fatigue together could explain significantly 25% of the shared variance of body pain (F= 26.29, P≤ 0.0009).

Conclusion: This study showed the effect of psychological and clinical factors on body pain exacerbation in MS patients. Therefore, it is necessary for clinicians to consider identifying these factors and the relationships of the factors with increasing pain in patients with MS.