Expanded disability status scale in Multiple Sclerosis: Relationship to visual evoked potential

Abstract

Background: Multiple sclerosis (MS) prevalence in Iraq is 11.73/100,000 it causes disability in younger adults. Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) can monitor MS disability while Visually Evoked Potentials (VEP) serves as a marker of myelination. Objectives: To explore the relationship between EDSS and VEPs in multiple sclerosis patients. Patients and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Ghazi Al- Hariri Hospital from first of Nov 2021 till the end of Jan 2022. Fifty patients with multiple sclerosis were compared to 50 healthy individuals. EDSS Data were collected using a structured questionnaire, P100 latency were measured using VEP. The Correlation was used to investigate the relationship between P100- latencies and EDSS. P value ≤0.05 was considered significant. Results: The average age of MS cases was 33.5±8.01 years, and the mean EDSS was 2.8±2.86. A significant difference in the latency period was reported. The study showed a significant positive correlation between EDSS and P100 latency period. Conclusions: Using non-invasive procedures like VEPs can help to monitor and detect deterioration and improvement in MS patients.