Problematic clinical features of powered wheelchair users with severely disabling multiple sclerosis

Figures & data

Table 1. Comorbidity in 91 electric-powered indoor/outdoor wheelchair users with multiple sclerosis compared to published comorbidity for the disease (^anoted by Kang et al. [11]).

Comorbidity [12]	Comorbidity [10]	Comorbidity DeSouza and Frank (n)
Anaemia	Anaemia
Arthritis	Arthritis	Arthritis: osteoarthritis (3)
Breast cancer	Breast cancer
Cataracts	Cataracts
Colon cancer	Colon cancer
Diabetes	Diabetes	Diabetes (3)
Fibromyalgia	Fibromyalgia
Glaucoma	Glaucoma
Heart disease	Heart disease	Heart disease (2)^a
Hip replacement	Hip replacement
Hypercholesterolaemia	Hyperlipidaemia	Hypercholesterolaemia (1)
Hypertension	Hypertension	Hypertension (2)
Inflammatory bowel  disease	Inflammatory bowel disease	Inflammatory bowel disease (1)
Irritable bowel  syndrome	Irritable bowel syndrome	Irritable bowel syndrome (1)
Kidney disease	Kidney disease
Knee replacement	Knee replacement
Liver disease	Liver disease
Lung cancer	Lung cancer
Lung disease	Lung disease	Asthma (5)^a
Peptic ulcer disease	Peptic ulcer disease
Peripheral vascular  disease	Peripheral vascular disease
Rectal cancer	Rectal cancer
Rheumatoid arthritis	Rheumatoid arthritis
Sjogren’s Syndrome	Sjögren’s syndrome
Skin cancer	Skin cancer
Systemic lupus  erythematosus	Systemic lupus erythematosus
Thyroid	Thyroid	Thyroid (1)^a
Uveitis	Uveitis
Vitamin B 12 deficiency	Vitamin B 12 deficiency
Human Immunodeficiency  Virus
	Anxiety
	Bipolar disorder
	Depression	Depression (5)^a
	Epilepsy	Epilepsy (1)^a
	Migraine
	Osteoporosis	Osteoporosis (1)
	Schizophrenia

Table 2. Frequency of features of multiple sclerosis (MS) and features of disability found in 91 electric-powered indoor/outdoor wheelchair recipients.

MS features (n)	Disability features (n)
Spasticity (10)	Pressure sores/leg ulcers (9)
Urinary incontinence (3)	Low back pain (9)
Choking/swallowing issues (2)	Dependent oedema/cellulitis (5)
Constipation (2)	Shoulder pain (4)
Faecal incontinence (2)	(kypho)scoliosis (4)
MS fatigue (2)	Neck pain (4)
Trigeminal neuralgia (2)	Thromboembolic disorders (2)
Visual impairment (2)	Weight gain (1)
Contractures (1)
Urinary tract infection (1)
Intractable pain – cause unclear (1)

Table 3. Factors relating to additional clinical features (ACFs) of 91 electric-powered indoor/outdoor wheelchair users with multiple sclerosis.

	No ACFs	One ACF	Two or more ACFs	Total
N	31	29	31	91
Age (mean, SD,  range)	59, 9.7, 37–74	60.2, 11.1, 39–78	58.7, 12.9, 35–81	59.3, 11.2, 35–81
Male: Female	10:21	10:19	8:23	28:63
TIS (y, n, nk)	11, 14, 6	17, 10, 2	18, 12, 1	46, 36, 9
SS (y, n)	4, 27	5, 24	6, 25	15, 76

TIS, tilt-in-space; SS, specialised seating; y, yes; n, no; nk, not known.

Kang JH, Chen YH, Lin HC. Comorbidities amongst patients with multiple sclerosis: a population-based controlled study. Euro J Neurol 2010;17:1215–19

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Marrie RA, Horwitz RI, Cutter G, et al. Association between comorbidity and clinical characteristics of MS. Acta Neurol Scand 2011;124:135–41

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Horton M, Rudick RA, Hara-Cleaver C, Marrie RA. Validation of a self-report comorbidity questionnaire for multiple sclerosis. Neuroepidemiol 2010;35:83–90

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