Skip to content
DraconiticResearch
Search Sources API
203,948 studies31 sourcesUpdated 25 min ago
Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Journal of Clinical Medicine

Self-Reported Handicap and Pain in Multiple Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of the London Handicap Scale and Disability Status in a Slovak Neurorehabilitation Cohort

  • Wioletta Mikuľáková1
  • Piotr Pobrotyn2
  • Małgorzata Paprocka-Borowicz2,3
  • Joanna Rosińczuk1,4
4 affiliations
  1. 1Department of Physiotherapy, Faculty of Health Care, University of Prešov, 080 01 Prešov, Slovakia
  2. 2Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, 53-370 Wroclaw, Poland
  3. 3Department of Neurological Rehabilitation, Regional Specialist Hospital in Wroclaw, 51-128 Wroclaw, Poland
  4. 4Department of Nursing, Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, Wroclaw Medical University, 51-618 Wroclaw, Poland
Open at sourceDOICite

Abstract

Background/Objectives: Handicap (participation restriction) and pain are clinically important but under-investigated outcomes in multiple sclerosis (MS). We examined the London Handicap Scale (LHS) and pain (Visual Analogue Scale, VAS) in relation to disability and other clinical variables. Methods: This secondary, cross-sectional, non-interventional analysis included 65 Slovak patients with MS (study group, SG, n = 32, designated for a 12-week neurorehabilitation program; control group, CG, n = 33, waitlisted), all assessed before rehabilitation. Associations were tested with Spearman correlation (Benjamini–Hochberg-adjusted) and linear regression; groups were compared with the Mann–Whitney test. Results: Disability (EDSS) correlated with LHS (ρ = −0.667) and VAS pain (ρ = 0.457; both p < 0.001), although SF-36 measures correlated more strongly. In adjusted models, EDSS was the only significant predictor, explaining 44.1% of the variance in LHS and 21.1% in VAS pain. LHS and VAS pain did not differ between SG and CG (p = 0.936 and p = 0.770) but differed across EDSS severity subgroups (p < 0.001 and p = 0.007). Conclusions: EDSS is a significant but partial correlate of handicap and pain, supporting their assessment alongside disability staging. The baseline group comparison is descriptive and provides no evidence about the effects of neurorehabilitation.

Related

  1. Association Between Pain and Functional Disability in Patients with Shoulder Tendinopathy: A Cross-Sectional Study Using Patient-Reported and Performance-Based Measures.
    Stefanos Drimytakis, Panagiotis-Nikolaos Vlachogiorgis, Anna Christakou
    Muscles (Basel, Switzerland)Peer-reviewedCC BYFull textSurgery & anaesthesiaEurope PMC
  2. Hormone Replacement Therapy and Disability Progression in Women with Multiple Sclerosis
    T. P. Copeland, K. A. McKay, A. Pedersen +2
    medRxivPreprintAll rights reservedFull textNeurologymedRxiv
  3. Apathy-depression overlap: unmasking hidden disability profiles in multiple sclerosis
    Serena Oliveri, Francesca Massaro, Clara Tambussi +9
    Frontiers in neurologyPeer-reviewedCC BYFull textNeurologyEurope PMC
  4. The Epidemiology of Disability in Saudi Arabia: National Prevalence, Functional Multimorbidity, and Age-Stratified Self-Reported Causes
    Saad M. Bindawas, Vishal Vennu
    Journal of clinical medicinePeer-reviewedCC BYFull textGeneral medicineEurope PMC
  5. Cross-Cultural Adaptation and Psychometric Validation of the Arabic Duruöz Hand Index: A Reliable Patient-Reported Measure for Hand Disability in Arabic-Speaking Populations
    Marc Boutros, Guy Awad, Caren Hassan +6
    Hand (New York, N.Y.)Peer-reviewedLicence not statedFull textSurgery & anaesthesiaPMC

Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{mikuľakova2026selfreported,
  title = {{Self-Reported Handicap and Pain in Multiple Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of the London Handicap Scale and Disability Status in a Slovak Neurorehabilitation Cohort}},
  author = {Wioletta Mikuľáková and Piotr Pobrotyn and Małgorzata Paprocka-Borowicz and Joanna Rosińczuk},
  journal = {Journal of Clinical Medicine},
  year = {2026},
  month = nov,
  doi = {10.3390/jcm15218735},
  url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/15/21/8735},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Self-Reported Handicap and Pain in Multiple Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of the London Handicap Scale and Disability Status in a Slovak Neurorehabilitation Cohort
AU  - Wioletta Mikuľáková
AU  - Piotr Pobrotyn
AU  - Małgorzata Paprocka-Borowicz
AU  - Joanna Rosińczuk
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/11/09
JO  - Journal of Clinical Medicine
DO  - 10.3390/jcm15218735
UR  - https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/15/21/8735
AB  - Background/Objectives: Handicap (participation restriction) and pain are clinically important but under-investigated outcomes in multiple sclerosis (MS). We examined the London Handicap Scale (LHS) and pain (Visual Analogue Scale, VAS) in relation to disability and other clinical variables. Methods: This secondary, cross-sectional, non-interventional analysis included 65 Slovak patients with MS (study group, SG, n = 32, designated for a 12-week neurorehabilitation program; control group, CG, n = 33, waitlisted), all assessed before rehabilitation. Associations were tested with Spearman correlation (Benjamini–Hochberg-adjusted) and linear regression; groups were compared with the Mann–Whitney test. Results: Disability (EDSS) correlated with LHS (ρ = −0.667) and VAS pain (ρ = 0.457; both p < 0.001), although SF-36 measures correlated more strongly. In adjusted models, EDSS was the only significant predictor, explaining 44.1% of the variance in LHS and 21.1% in VAS pain. LHS and VAS pain did not differ between SG and CG (p = 0.936 and p = 0.770) but differed across EDSS severity subgroups (p < 0.001 and p = 0.007). Conclusions: EDSS is a significant but partial correlate of handicap and pain, supporting their assessment alongside disability staging. The baseline group comparison is descriptive and provides no evidence about the effects of neurorehabilitation.
SN  - 2077-0383
ER  -