Article

An intervention for persons with neuromuscular diseases (NMD) or multiple sclerosis (MS) who experienced severe fatigue was developed which aimed
at educating participants in maintaining a balance between capacity and load in
their daily activities. This pilot study evaluated the results of this
intervention. Persons with NMD or MS who experienced severe fatigue were
included. Outcome measures were: fatigue (Fatigue Severity Scale), health-related
quality of life (HRQoL; SF-36) and self-efficacy (ALCOS-16). Changes in scores
between the start of the intervention (T0) and 3 months post-intervention (T1)
were tested with the Wilcoxon tests in the complete group and in subgroups
(gender, education, high/low self-efficacy). RESULTS: Forty-three persons
participated. Significant improvements of HRQoL were found for the domains
role-physical, mental health and general health perceptions. Subgroup analyses
showed more improvement in males (fatigue, role-physical, vitality, bodily pain,
general health perceptions), participants with lower education (role-physical,
vitality) and participants with low self-efficacy at T0 (self-efficacy, mental
health, general health perceptions) than in females, participants with higher
education and participants with higher initial self-efficacy. CONCLUSION: This
pilot-study provides preliminary evidence for the effectiveness of a group
educational intervention in improving HRQoL without increasing fatigue in persons
with NMD and MS.

Langue : ANGLAIS