Open AccessPain and dysfunction in amiotrophic side sclerosis
Author(s) -
Danielle Antoniazzi Kirscht Auermann D'Allembert Costa Sousa,
Julia Magalhães Waybe Gonçalves,
Marcela Ferreira de Andrade Rangel,
Igor Roque de Paula,
Mariana Asmar Alencar
Publication year - 2021
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Conference proceedings
DOI - 10.5327/1516-3180.051
Subject(s) - amyotrophic lateral sclerosis , medicine , logistic regression , physical therapy , sitting , physical medicine and rehabilitation , population , chronic pain , disease , environmental health , pathology
Background: Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive disease characterized by degenerative symptoms of motor neurons. Pain has been described as a frequent symptom and is associated with a negative impact on the life of the person with ALS, however it is often neglected in clinical practice. There is a need for a better understanding of its characteristics and its relationship with the clinical and functional aspects of ALS. Objective: To investigate the occurrence and characteristics of pain in individuals with sporadic ALS and to verify the association between pain and clinical, functional and mobility aspects. Design and setting: This is an exploratory cross-sectional study carried out at the Neuromuscular Diseases Clinic of HC / UFMG, located in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Methods: Aspects about pain (occurrence, intensity, duration and location), mobility (turning in bed, sitting and standing, standing and walking) and functionality (ALSFRS-R) were evaluated. A descriptive and comparative analysis was carried out between the groups and a binary logistic regression analysis. SPSS was used and the significance level was 5%. Result: 51 people (56.9 ± 11.3 years) were evaluated. A total of 62.7% reported pain. Predominant characteristics of pain: chronic (n = 29; 90.6%), moderate intensity (n = 20; 62.5%), in the leg (n = 12; 37.5%), 50% in more than one location . The population in pain was composed of: women (p = 0.038), longer illness time (p = 0.001), worse results in the ability to sit and stand (p = 0.033), stand up (p = 0.024) and walk ( p = 0.001) and worse score in the ALSFRS-R (p = 0.021). In the present study, regression showed that the inability to walk functionally increases the chance of pain in ALS patients by 5.3 times. Conclusion: Pain is a frequent symptom among people with ALS, and a greater functional limitation seems to be associated with its presence. It is important that future studies investigate this relationship better.