Multiple Sclerosis

Question 1

Initial complaints of MS:

Answer 1

Typically visual disturbances, dizziness, and weakness. Symptoms at times worsen (exacerbation) and at other times improve (remission).

Question 2

T or F: MS progresses over time and is eventually irreversible.

Answer 2

T

Question 3

What are the common motor symptoms of M.S

Answer 3

a. Impaired balance and coordination (ataxia)
b. Partial or complete paralysis of a part of the body; muscle spasticity, especially in lower extremities
c. Muscle weakness
d. Fatigue:
e. Intention tremors
f. Dysphagia

Question 4

What is the most common and debilitating symptom of M.S?

Answer 4

Fatigue

Question 5

Sensory symptoms of M.S

Answer 5

a. Paresthesia: numbness or tingling
i. Impaired vibratory, proprioceptive, pain, touch, and temperature sensations
ii. Distorted superficial sensation
iii. Impaired sensation, which may affect perceptual skills such as stereognosis, kinesthesia, or
body scheme
b. Vertigo
c. Pain (typically the result of musculoskeletal causes)

Question 6

Paresthesia:

Answer 6

numbness or tingling

Question 7

4. Visual symptoms

Answer 7

a. Diplopia (double vision) or blurred or dimmed vision, with or without ocular pain
b. Optic neuritis, which causes sudden loss of vision with pain in or behind the eye, with symptoms
possibly subsiding after 3–6 weeks without residual impairments
i. Partial loss of vision (scotoma)
ii. Nystagmus
iii. Loss of visual acuity in 80% of people with MS (Atchinson & Dirette, 2007, p. 263)

Question 8

Optic neuritis,

Answer 8

Disorder that causes sudden loss of vision with pain in or behind the eye, with symptoms
possibly subsiding after 3–6 weeks without residual impairments

Question 9

Nystagmus

Answer 9

Condiiton in which the eyes make repetitive, uncontrolled movements. These movements often result in reduced vision and depth perception and can affect balance and coordination.

Question 10

Communication symptoms of M.S

7

Answer 10

a. Slurred speech
b. Scanning speech, or slow enunciation with frequent hesitations at the beginnings of words or
syllables

Question 11

Bladder and bowel symptoms of M.S

Answer 11

a. Incontinence or urinary retention (failure to empty the bladder; Falvo, 2009, p. 124)
b. Increased urgency or frequency, as well as constipation (Cooper, 2007, p. 473)

Question 12

Sexual symptoms of M.S

Answer 12

a. Men: erectile dysfunction
b. Women: decreased libido, lubrication difficulty, and inorgasmia, but ability to conceive and
carry pregnancy to term remains intact

Question 13

Cognitive symptoms of M.S

Answer 13

a. Short-term memory loss
b. Attention deficits
c. Decreased processing speed
d. Impairment in visuospatial ability
e. Impaired executive functioning and judgment

Question 14

Cognitive symptoms of M.S

Answer 14

a. Short-term memory loss
b. Attention deficits
c. Decreased processing speed
d. Impairment in visuospatial ability
e. Impaired executive functioning and judgment
f. “Difficulty with attention, conceptualization, memory, or new learning. . . . difficulty with ab-
stract reasoning and problem solving as well as difficulty with tasks that require either rapid or
precise motor responses”

Question 15

Emotional symptoms of M.S

Answer 15

a. Depression
b. Inappropriate euphoria
c. Lability, likely attributable to lesions in the frontal lobe