View article

Multiple sclerosis (MS) causes a wide variety of neurological defi cits, with ambulatory im pairment th em ost obvious cause of d isability. Within 10 to 15 years of di sease onset, 80% of persons with MS experience gai t problems due to muscle weakness or spastici ty, fatigue, and loss of balan ce. To facilitate mobility, persons with MS frequently use mobility assistive technology (MAT), such as canes, crutches, walkers, wheelchairs, and scooters. W e systematically reviewed the published literature on MAT use among persons with MS. We used elec tronic reference list ss uch as Ovid MEDLINE and PubMed to search the literature. We located 50 articles that met the initial criteria of providing good evidence of th e types of MAT dev ices and th eir benefits for in dividuals with MS. A limited number of articl es with higher levels of evidence was found regarding benefits of MAT use sp ecifically for persons with MS. Evidence-based literature provides the basis for the strongest met hod of measu rable clinical performance; therefore, having a strong research study design is vital to the justification of MA T p rescription and reim bursement decisio ns. However, a paucity of studies with higher levels of evidencebased practice exists.