The Study of the Correlation between Constipation and Fatigue in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis

Abstract

Fatigue and constipation are among the most common factors in multiple sclerosis patients. From the perspective of Persian Medicine, constipated patients are prone to fatigue and we suspected that this problem in patients with multiple sclerosis becomes more severe. The Rome III questionnaire is a valid instrument that measures the existence and severity of constipation and FSS is a scale to assess the scale of fatigue. The objective was to assess if there is an association between constipation and fatigue symptoms in patients with multiple sclerosis. Hence, 355 patients with multiple sclerosis participated in this study. Patients were divided into a constipated or non-constipated group and compared to determine the association between constipation and fatigue scores. It was seen that the level of fatigue and depression in the constipated group was significantly higher than those without constipation (P value < 0.001). According to the observed association between constipation and fatigue, and traditional Persian Medicine theories, constipation can lead to fatigue; patients with constipation had worse scores on the FSS questionnaires and future studies should assess if the treatment of constipation with suitable laxative drugs in multiple sclerosis patients leads to a reduction of fatigue.