January 19, 2024 News by Andrea Lobo, PhD $40K grant will fund study of cycling and virtual reality for MS A research team at the Kessler Foundation has received a $39,994 grant from the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers (CMSC) to investigate whether combining aerobic cycling with virtual reality can improve cognitive function in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). A key focus of the study will be to…
November 8, 2023 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Online brain training games improved cognition in small MS trial The use of a computer-based program called BrainHQ led to significantly improved scores on cognitive tests among people with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to data from a small clinical trial in Nebraska. The study was led by Samantha Jack, PhD, as part of work she did as a…
August 8, 2023 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Cognitive health likely to affect person’s sense of sexual satisfaction Estimates of the prevalence of sexual dysfunction with multiple sclerosis (MS), as well of its risk factors, differ depending on the specific cutoffs used to assess sexual health on a standardized test, a study highlights. Regardless of the cutoff given, however, findings suggest that patients with poorer cognition tend…
February 28, 2023 News by Lindsey Shapiro, PhD ACTRIMS 2023: Astrocyte receptors may help to ease MS cognitive issues Activating certain receptors on astrocytes ā a type of nerve support cell ā may offer a way of treating cognitive problems in multiple sclerosis (MS), according to recent research. MS mouse models genetically engineered to lack these receptors, called TNFR2, showed signs of greater cognitive problems, whereas cognitive gains…
September 20, 2022 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Thalamic Atrophy Moderates Ties Between Fitness, Cognition: Study In people with multiple sclerosis (MS) who show atrophy in a brain region called the thalamus, aerobic fitness is strongly correlated with standardized assessments of cognition and walking ability. However, these associations are not seen for MS patients who don’t have atrophy in the thalamus, according to a new…
September 14, 2022 News by Vanda Pinto, PhD Higher Levels of MS Fatigue Linked to Poorer Cognitive Skills People with multiple sclerosis (MS) who report higher levels of fatigue are more likely to have lower performance scores in tests that evaluate cognitive skills, a study from Ireland suggests. Specifically, poor verbal learning abilities, visual-spatial memory, and information processing speed (IPS) were associated with higher levels of self-reported…
August 16, 2022 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Healthy Connections in Brain May Be Needed for Cognitive Rehab People with multiple sclerosis (MS) who responded to cognitive rehabilitation showed healthier connections between certain brain regions on functional MRI scans than did MS patients who did not respond to the rehab program, a new study reports. These results indicate that certain brain regions need to be working…
June 30, 2022 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Long-term Zeposia May Help Cognitive Function in Patients, Data Show Long-term treatment with Zeposia (ozanimod) stabilizes or even improves cognitive function in adults with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), particularly among those with greater brain volumes. Thatās according to five years of data from the completed SUNBEAM Phase 3 clinical trial (NCT02294058) and the ongoing…
May 19, 2022 News by Lindsey Shapiro, PhD Low-impact Aquatic Exercise a Good Alternative, but Access Is a Barrier Aquatic exercise is used less often by people with multiple sclerosis (MS) than land-based exercise, but it’s generally well liked by those who use it, a patient survey found. A lack of pool access and associated expenses remain significant barriers to aquatic exercise. The team also found that exercise…
April 4, 2022 News by Lindsey Shapiro, PhD Irisin Hormone May Underlie Benefits of Aerobic Exercise for RRMS Six weeks of aerobic exercise led to benefits in cognition, fatigue, and depression among people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), which may be due to increases in blood levels of a hormone called irisin, according to data from a randomized, controlled trial. “Considering the high prevalence of neuropsychiatric symptoms…
March 9, 2022 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Roche and UK University Team Up to Test Floodlight App Effectiveness Roche is teaming up with the University of Plymouth in the U.K. to help develop Floodlight MS, the company’s app to monitor multiple sclerosis (MS). “We were pleased to collaborate with Roche on an innovative project to validate the Floodlight MS app and, as with everything we do…
March 7, 2022 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News That Caught My Eye Last Week: ‘Cog Fog,’ Tolebrutinib, Ublituximab, Spinal Atrophy #ACTRIMS2022 ā Cognitive Training Paired With tDCS Aids Patients A treatment to clear “cog fog” would be welcomed by many people with MS. Over 75% of us are troubled by cognitive problems. In this study, adding painless transcranial direct current stimulation to standard cognitive training improved results when compared…
March 3, 2022 News by Marisa Wexler, MS #ACTRIMS2022 ā Cognitive Training Paired With tDCS Aids Patients Electrically stimulating the brain while doing at-home cognitive training games can help to prevent a decline in cognition for people with multiple sclerosis (MS), particularly those with more advanced disability, a study indicates. “This could lead to a therapy that can remediate cognitive impairment, we just need to optimize”…
February 21, 2022 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Cognitive Problems May Be Due to Myelin’s Loss on Inhibitory Neurons Myelin is required for certain inhibitory neurons ā which help to suppress abnormal activity in the brain ā to work as they should, according to a study in mouse models. Loss of myelin on these neurons results in excessive electric activity in other nerve cells, likely disrupting the brain’s ability…
January 21, 2022 News by Margarida Maia, PhD Real-World Data Shows Tecfidera Comparable to Gilenya at Preventing Relapses Tecfidera (dimethyl fumarate) appears to have similar benefits to Gilenya (fingolimod) in preventing relapses and the loss of motor function and cognition in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), a study with real-world data found. The two medications also led to similar findings on MRI scans, including in…
October 1, 2021 Columns by Beth Ullah I Think, Therefore I Am More Than My Mental Fatigue āA river cuts through rock not because of its power, but because of its persistence.ā ā James N. Watkins Fatigue is arguably the most disruptive symptom of multiple sclerosis (MS). At least it is for me. It has an awful lot to answer for. And it will.
September 10, 2021 News by Margarida Maia, PhD Vibration Training Also Seen to Aid Cognition and Life Quality in Study A six-week program, called vibration training ā in which people stand on a vibrating platform for short periods of time ā eased disability and improved cognitive abilities and quality of life in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), a small randomized study found. The program was also well accepted and…
September 7, 2021 News by Yedida Y Bogachkov PhD Brain Atrophy, Serum NfL Levels May Predict Cognition Early in MS A blood test for serum neurofilament light chain (sNfL) levels, along with radiological findings, can help to detect early cognitive issues in people recently diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS), a study suggests. The study āCortical Thickness and Serum NfL Explain Cognitive Dysfunction in Newly Diagnosed Patients…
August 19, 2021 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Smartphone App Floodlight Found to Reliably Measure MS Data A smartphone-based app called Floodlight can reliably assess cognition, arm and hand function, and walking abilities in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to new analyses. “Detection of progression onset or worsening is critical to optimally adapt the therapeutic strategy” patients are using to treat the neurodegenerative disease,…
August 5, 2021 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Metformin Seen to Aid Cognition, Brain Biology in MS Rat Model Treatment with the diabetes medication metformin was seen to lessen cognitive impairment, improve coordination, and normalize neuronal activity in a rat model of multiple sclerosis (MS). The study reporting these findings,Ā “Evaluation of the effects of metformin as adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase activator on spatial learning and…
June 30, 2021 News by Somi Igbene, PhD Sleep Deprivation May Worsen Memory in Early MS Sleep deprivation may worsen memory in people with clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) or relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), a new observational study suggests. A link also was observed between a lack of sleep and worse cognitive efficiency in early MS, but that association was caused by the worse moods…
June 9, 2021 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Meaningful Cognitive Gains in Pediatric MS Captured Using Pencil-Paper Test A computer-based training program that exercises distinct components of attention and working memory can improve cognition in young people with pediatric-onset multiple sclerosis (POMS), a new study indicates. Findings also support a common pencil-and-paper measure of cognition, called the Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT), in detecting clinically meaningful changes…
March 26, 2021 News by Vanda Pinto, PhD NurOwn Cell Therapy Found Safe, Effective for Progressive MS in Phase 2 Trial NurOwn cell therapy led to significant improvements in the physical abilities, vision, and cognition of people withĀ progressive multiple sclerosis (MS) in a Phase 2 clinical trial, top-line data show. In addition to these positive efficacy results, BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics, NurOwn’s developer, announced that its cell-based therapy showed…
March 4, 2021 News by Forest Ray PhD #ACTRIMS2021 – Cognitive, Without Physical, Disability Growing Concern in MS Editorās note: TheĀ Multiple Sclerosis News Today news team is providing in-depth and unparalleled coverage of the virtual ACTRIMS Forum 2021, Feb. 25ā27. GoĀ hereĀ to see the latest stories from the conference. Cognitive impairment without physical disability in multiple sclerosis (MS) may grow in prevalence as newer therapies better control…
March 1, 2021 News by Marisa Wexler, MS #ACTRIMS2021 – Neurologist Calls for Trial Testing Estrogen Therapy at Menopause Editorās note: TheĀ Multiple Sclerosis News Today news team is providing in-depth and unparalleled coverage of the virtual ACTRIMS Forum 2021, Feb. 25ā27. GoĀ hereĀ to see all the latest stories from the conference. At the ACTRIMS Forum 2021, Rhonda Voskuhl, MD, a neurology professor at the University…
December 15, 2020 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Study Seeks to Better Understand How MS Affects Memory A new research project will seek to better understand the biological processes that drive memory problems in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), as a better understanding of these processes may open new avenues for intervention. The four-year study is titled “Neuroimaging of Hippocampally Mediated Memory Dysfunction in…
December 10, 2020 News by Diana Campelo Delgado Stem Cell Transplant Reduces Relapses and Disability in RRMS, Study Suggests Autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant (AHSCT) induces a reduction in relapse rate and physical disability in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) who respond inadequately to other treatments, a small study suggests. The study, āSelective cognitive dysfunction and physical disability improvement after autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation…
November 20, 2020 News by Marta Figueiredo, PhD MS Patients With Depression Symptoms Have More Difficulty Multitasking, Study Shows Patients in the early stages of multiple sclerosis with mild to moderate symptoms of depression performed worse on cognitive tests related to multitasking than on those focused on single tasks, a study has found. Notably, no such association was observed among healthy individuals, suggesting an MS-related link between mood,…
November 18, 2020 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Software Platform May Allow for Automated MS Cognitive Testing A software platform, called CogniSoft, allows for automated assessments of cognitive health in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). The platform was described in the study “CogniSoft: A Platform for the Automation of Cognitive Assessment and Rehabilitation of Multiple Sclerosis,” published in the journalĀ Computers. Cognitive impairment…
August 13, 2020 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD Too Much Cortisol May Affect Attention of Cognitively Non-fatigue MS Patients Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients have high levels of cortisol, a stress hormone, compared to healthy controls.Ā Also, patients categorized as non-cognitive fatigue show a higher variability in cortisol levels and perform worse on an attention task. Those findings are documented in the study, āRelation between cognitive fatigue and circadian…