Multipl Skleroz Hastalarında Yorgunluğun Motor İmgeleme Yeteneği Üzerine Etkisi

Abstract

This study was conducted to examine the effect of fatigue on motor imagery ability in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS) and to examine the learning effect of motor imagery. The study included 81 MS patients aged 18-54 years with Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) scores between 0 and 4.5. According to the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), patients were divided into 2 groups: those who scored 4 and above were classified as fatigued (Group 1) and those who scored under 4 were classified as non-fatigued (Group 2). Kinesthetic and Visual Imagery Questionnaire was used to evaluate the vividness component of motor imagery ability and mental chronometry tests were used to evaluate the temporal congruence component. Box Block Test including upper extremity skills and Timed Up and Go Test including lower extremity skills were used as mental chronometry tests. To examine the learning effect in the fatigued group, mental chronometry tests were administered 3 times at 30 minutes intervals. When the groups were compared in terms of the vividness component of mental imagery, the score of the kinesthetic imagery of the Kinesthetic Visual Imagery Questionnaire was lower in the Group 1 (p=0.011). When the results for the temporal congruence component were analyzed, it was found that Group 1 showed lower performance on the more affected side and the less affected side in the Box Block mental chronometry test, and Group 1 showed lower performance in the Timed Up and Go mental chronometry test (p= 0.007, p= 0.023, p=0.006, respectively). When the learning effect of the Group 1 in terms of mental chronometry tests was examined, it was observed that there was no difference between II. and III. measurements on the right side in the Box and Block mental chronometry test (p=0.451), no difference between II. and III. measurements on left side (p=0.712). There was no significant difference between the measurements in the Timed Up and Go mental chronometry evaluation (p=0.549). The difference between the two groups in terms of kinesthetic and temporal congruence components of motor imagery is attributed to the higher neural load of the kinesthetic and temporal congruence components. According to the learning effect results, in the Box Block mental chronometry test, there was an improvement in motor imagery performance between measurements in both the right and left hand; therefore, there was a learning effect. In the Timed Up and Go mental chronometry test, there was no learning effect because the performances of all three measurements were similar.