Is fatigue related to temperament and character dimansions in patients with multiple sklerozis?

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To examine the relationship between fatigue and temperament-character inventory among patients with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). METHODS: This study was conducted at a tertiary referral center between August-December 2010. Overall 75 patients with MS and 75 healthy volunteers in the control group were included into study. Patients with MS and controls were divided into two groups as ‘’Fatigue’’ and ‘’non-Fatigue’’. The personal features of patients and controls were determined using the ‘‘Temperament-Character Inventory’’. Fatigue individuals were detected using the ‘‘Fatigue Severity Scale’’. Statistical analyses were done by SPSS 16.0 software. RESULTS: In the study, ‘‘Harm Avoidance’’ and “Impulsiveness” were high, but ‘‘Social Acceptance’’ was low, among MS patients. Namely, fatigue patients with MS are more reluctant, passive, distrustful, easily fatigue, pessimistic, avoiding from harmful conditions and intolerant individuals than non-fatigue patients with MS and controls. Patients with MS were found more fatigue than healthy individuals although they were not entered to the ‘’fatigue classification’’ according to FSS. ‘‘Persistence’’ and ‘‘Purposefulness’’ scores were low among MS patients. Namely, fatigue patients with MS are more indolent, inactive, hesitant, irregular, rarely working for high success, tend to easily renunciation, and purposeless individuals than healthy volunteers. CONCLUSION: Fatigue significantly affects the temperament and character features in patients with Multiple Sclerosis

Keywords

• Multiple sclerosis
• fatigue
• personality
• temperament and character inventory