[Scales for functional assessment in multiple sclerosis].
OBJECTIVE: To review the characteristics which should be met by the scales for functional assessment of patients with multiple sclerosis in relation to the degree of invalidity, incapacity and handicap. DEVELOPMENT: The functional scales for neurological patients which we review are Barthel's index, the PULSES Scale, Katz Index, Rankin Scale, Kenny Scale, Donaldson Scale, Garno Scale, ISS (Incapacity Status Scale) FAM Scale (Functional Assessment Measure), Hauser's Ambulant Index, Cambridge Scale (CAMBS) and London Handicap Scale (LHS). CONCLUSIONS: There is no single scale for the functional assessment of patients with multiple sclerosis which covers all the aspects to be assessed. Therefore it is necessary to use a combination of various scales to find exactly the degree of invalidity, incapacity and handicap. From our point of view the scales with which this assessment may be done are--apart from the usually used NRS (Neurological Scoring System) and EDSS--the Hauser Index, Cambridge Scale and London Handicap Scale.