Biomedical subjects

Daphne Kos

Publications and source records attributed to Daphne Kos.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

A rapid screening tool for fatigue impact in multiple sclerosis.

BACKGROUND: Fatigue is a common complaint in multiple sclerosis (MS) and often interferes with daily functioning. Both clinicians and researchers may need to detect high levels of fatigue impact using a time and effort efficient tool. This study evaluates the psychometric properties of a rapid screening instrument for fatigue impact in multiple sclerosis. METHODS: Three visual analogue scales (VAS) for assessing the impact of fatigue were developed. Sixty two subjects with definite MS (mean age 52 +/- 10.5 years; 29 women) and 24 healthy controls (mean age 52 +/- 14 years; 13 women) completed all VAS scales (range 0-100), the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) (range 7-63), the Modified Fatigue Impact Scale (MFIS) (range 0-84) and the Guy's Neurological Disability Scale (GNDS) (range 0-5). All tests were repeated with an interval of maximum three days. To evaluate the reproducibility, intraclass correlations (ICC) were calculated, based on one-way analysis of variance for repeated measurements. Validity was considered by means of correlation coefficients. ROC analysis was used to determine the accuracy of the VAS scales. RESULTS: The ICC of the VAS scales ranged from 0.68 to 0.69. VAS scales showed low to moderate correlation with FSS, MFIS and GNDS (Kendall's tau 0.23-0.45) and were not related with physical or cognitive performance, or with depression. All VAS scales were able to discriminate between subjects with MS and controls. Twenty five subjects with MS had a Fatigue Severity Scale score of 36 or more and were classified into the "fatigue" group. ROC analysis showed that VAS_1 is most useful to classify subjects in the "fatigue" group. A cut-off value of VAS_1 of 59 displayed 76% sensitivity and 72% specificity. When using the MFIS score of 40 or more to classify the groups, VAS_1 remained the strongest tool, with 81% sensitivity and 77% specificity at a cut-off value of 59. CONCLUSION: The VAS for the impact of fatigue on daily life (VAS_1) is a moderately reliable, though valid and useful tool to screen rapidly for fatigue impact in multiple sclerosis. A cut-off value of 59 satisfactorily classifies individuals having severe fatigue with a high impact on daily life. In clinical practice, a more comprehensive assessment of fatigue and the impact on daily life is recommended.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Paced visual serial addition test in multiple sclerosis.

The paced auditory serial addition test (PASAT), a subtest of the multiple sclerosis functional composite score (MSFC), is increasingly used in the evaluation of cognitive function in multiple sclerosis (MS). While patient acceptance for the PASAT is low, its visual version, the paced visual serial addition test (PVSAT), is perceived to be better tolerated. The aim of this study was to investigate the interchangeability of PVSAT and PASAT in the evaluation of cognitive function in MS. Twenty-one normal controls and 50 patients with clinically definite MS were tested with PASAT and PVSAT. Both for PASAT and PVSAT, 3 and 2-second versions of two parallel test forms were used. In the PVSAT, the PASAT stimuli were shown on a computer screen. Patients were also tested with the other two MSFC subtests, i.e. the nine-hole pegboard test and timed 25-foot walk test, to calculate MSFC scores. PASAT-3 correlated highly with both PVSAT-3 and PVSAT-2. MSFC-v scores calculated with PVSAT-2 and PVSAT-3 values correlated highly with MSFC scores calculated with PASAT-3 results. The results suggest that the PVSAT can be used as an alternative for the PASAT in the MSFC.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

Assessing fatigue in multiple sclerosis: Dutch modified fatigue impact scale.

The aim of this study is to evaluate the reliability, validity and responsiveness of the Dutch version of the Modified Fatigue Impact Scale. Fifty-one randomly selected subjects with definite multiple sclerosis (MS) (mean age 51.9 +/- 10.5 years, 25 women) and 20 healthy controls (mean age 50.6 +/- 14.0 years, 13 women) filled in the Modified Fatigue Impact Scale (MFIS), the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) and the fatigue subscale of Guy's Neurological Disability Scale (GNDS). All tests were repeated with an interval of maximum three days. The hospitalised individuals with MS (n = 20) were assessed at intake and discharge. No significant difference was found between first and second administration of MFIS (z = -.519, p = .603, Wilcoxon signed ranks test), with a good correlation (.729). MFIS was able to distinguish individuals with MS from controls, and subjects with fatigue from the non-fatigued group. MFIS showed no floor or ceiling effect. MFIS correlated moderately with Fatigue Severity Scale (.447) and the fatigue subscale of GNDS (.487). The 20 hospitalised subjects had significant lower MFIS scores (z = -3.401, p = .001) after a four-week rehabilitation programme, whereas the FSS did not change. This study indicates that the Dutch version of the MFIS is a reliable, valid and responsive tool to assess the impact of MS-related fatigue on daily life.

Activities of Daily Living↗