Abstract:
bnormalities in adipose tissue metabolism often accompany the progression of neurodegenerative disorders. Anthropometric body measurements may serve as additional markers of disease severity and disease course. Studying these measurements may provide a deeper understanding of the systemic changes that occur in the setting of demyelination. The aim of the study is to determine the characteristics and sex differences of skinfold thickness in young Ukrainian men and women with multiple sclerosis with varying degrees of disability. Skinfold thickness was determined in 35 Ukrainian men and 59 women with multiple sclerosis with mild, moderate and moderately severe impairments. The initial skinfold thickness measurements of 82 practically healthy Ukrainian men and 101 women of similar age were taken from the data bank of the National Pirogov Memorial Medical University, Vinnytsya Research Center. Statistical analysis was performed in the licensed package «Statistica 6.0» using nonparametric evaluation methods. When comparing skinfold thickness between practically healthy and multiple sclerosis men or women, numerous significant or trends of differences were established: in all groups of sick men and women – lower skinfold thickness values on the shin and at the lower angle of the scapula and higher skinfold thickness values on the chest; in most groups of male patients – higher values of skinfold thickness on the thigh and on the side and lower values of skinfold thickness on the back of the shoulder; in most groups of patients and women control group – higher values of skinfold thickness on the forearm and on the thigh and lower values of skinfold thickness on the abdomen. There are practically no reliable or trends in skinfold thickness differences between groups of patients with multiple sclerosis, men or women. Manifestations of sexual dimorphism between patients with multiple sclerosis are established mainly for skinfold thickness on the extremities (higher values in women). The multidirectional discrepancies in skinfold thickness on the thigh and lower leg and at the lower angle of the scapula and on the chest established between practically healthy and patients with multiple sclerosis are manifestations of a subpathological constitutional type in this disease
