title: Vesicourethral dysfunction associated with multiple sclerosis: correlations among response, most prevailing clinical status and grade of the disease.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  In the present study we have performed a correlation of the most prevailing clinical conditions of multiple sclerosis (MS) with overall drug response and the grade of the disease.
  
  
  METHODS
  One hundred and ten patients were consecutively and prospectively studied with a clinical syndrome of MS, ranging in age from 32 to 65 years of age. In the present study we evaluated the patients with DESD (n = 35), detrusor hyperreflexia (n = 32), and/or low compliance (n = 8). The latter three conditions were considered as the most threatening, and thus a correlation with the drug response and the grade of the disease was attempted.
  
  
  RESULTS
  All patients were initially managed in a conservative way avoiding surgical procedures and following primarily pharmacologic treatment, because of the quite common reversibility of MS. Our results suggest that there is no correlation between the prevailing clinical status and drug response (p = 0.06) or grade of the disease (p = 0.07). The only statistically significant correlation was seen between grade of the disease and overall drug response (p < 0.0001)
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Therapeutic responses were dependent upon the grade of the disease. The continuation of this study recruiting more patients into various subgroups of voiding dysfunction will further validate the statistical correlations among disease grade and therapeutic responses.
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, University of Patras, School of Medicine, University Hospital, Rio, Greece. gbarbal@med.upatras.gr
authors.forename: G A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Barbalias
authors.forename: E N
authors.initials: EN
authors.lastname: Liatsikos
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Passakos
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Barbalias
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sakelaropoulos
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000150:complications*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012021:Reflex, Abnormal; D001743:Urinary Bladder / Q000503:physiopathology; D014555:Urination Disorders / Q000209:etiology*; D014563:Urodynamics