Social support and anxiety correlation with resilience in patients with multiple sclerosis during COVID-19 pandemic

Vahid Shaygannejad; Omid Mirmosayyeb; Aysa Shaygannejad; Saeed Vaheb; Sara Bagherieh; Mozhdeh Askari; Mahsa Ghajarzadeh

doi:10.18502/cjn.v22i4.14525

Vahid Shaygannejad Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
Omid Mirmosayyeb Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
Aysa Shaygannejad Isfahan Neurosciences Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
Saeed Vaheb Isfahan Neurosciences Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
Sara Bagherieh Isfahan Neurosciences Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
Mozhdeh Askari Isfahan Neurosciences Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
Mahsa Ghajarzadeh Universal Council of Epidemiology (UCE), Universal Scientific Education and Research Network (USERN), University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18502/cjn.v22i4.14525

Keywords: Multiple Sclerosis; COVID-19; Resilience; Anxiety; Social Support

Abstract

Background: Social support and anxiety are essential for patients with chronic diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS). During coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the psychological well-being of subjects with MS was an important issue, and we designed this study to assess anxiety, resilience, and social support in these patients during COVID-19 pandemic stage.

Methods: We used convenience sampling for this study. Inclusion criteria were definite diagnosis of MS based
on McDonald criteria and age more than 18 years.
Two hundred patients with MS were enrolled. Subjects were asked to fill out valid and reliable Persian versions of Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC), Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), and Perceived Social Support Scale. We also collected demographic data (age, sex, marital status, and occupation), disease duration, and disability level [Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS)]. Continuous variables were presented as mean ± standard deviation (SD) (except for EDSS, as its distribution was not normal), and categorical variables were presented as frequencies. Correlation coefficients were calculated. We did a subgroup analysis and compared patients with BAI less than 30 and more than 30 (severe anxiety). A P-value less than 0.05 was considered significant.

Results: Mean age and mean duration of the disease were 36.5 ± 9.3 and 6.2 ± 5.4 years, respectively. Mean BAI, social support, and resilience scores were
33.8 ± 11.4, 65.7 ± 16.7, and 62.5 ± 19.4, respectively. resilience and social support scales (r = 0.44, P < 0.001), and also a significant negative correlation between resilience and BAI (r = -0.31, P < 0.001). Patients with severe anxiety (BAI > 30) had lower social support scores and resilience (social support: 70.3 ± 13.1 vs. 61.5 ± 18.6, P < 0.001; resilience: 57.3 ± 17.0 vs. 68.2 ± 19.6, P < 0.001) compared to patients with BAI ≤ 30. By considering resilience score as the dependent variable and other variables as independent variables, we found that BAI and social support scores were independent predictors.

Conclusion: Social support and anxiety are independent predictors of resilience during COVID-19 pandemic in patients with MS.