Relationship Between Fatigue and Helicobacter pylori Infection in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis

INTRODUCTION: One of the common complaints in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) is fatigue. Studies have reported that 75-87% of patients complain of fatigue. In our study, the possible relationship between fatigue severity and Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection in patients with MS was investigated.
METHODS: The fatigue severity scale was applied to patients who presented to the neurology clinic during the study to assess fatigue. The Beck Depression Inventory was used to evaluate depression, and the Epworth sleepiness scale was used to assess sleepiness. Serum quantitative Immunoglobulin G (IgG) levels for H. pylori were measured using the enzyme-linked immunoassay. IBM SPSS Statistics version 26.0 was used for analysis.
RESULTS: The MS and control groups consisted of 105 and 79 people, respectively. H. pylori seropositivity was not significant in the intergroup analysis. In the MS group, H. pylori IgG level was significantly higher in patients with fatigue than in patients without fatigue. The Beck Depression Scale and Expanded Disability Status Scale scores were significantly higher in the MS group.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Individual, environmental, and developmental factors were thought to play a role in fatigue, which is common in patients with MS. Another factor could be depression. In our study, H. pylori IgG levels were significantly higher in patients with fatigue in the MS group. This result suggests that H. pylori may be a factor in the pathophysiology of fatigue.