Does cognitive performance explain the gap between physiological and perceived fall-risk in people with multiple sclerosis?

Background: Cognitive impairment is linked with increased risk of falls in people with multiple sclerosis (pwMS), but it is not clear whether cognitive performance may help to account for the discordance between fall-risk due to actual physiological functioning and the individual's perception of their fall-risk. This study examined the relationship between cognitive performance and the concordance/discordance of physiological and perceived fall-risk in pwMS.

Methods: In this single-center cross-sectional analysis of 201 pwMS, proxies for physiological (gait speed) and perceived (Modified Falls Efficacy Scale) fall-risk were collected.

The prevalence of multiple sclerosis in Israel based on validation of a health care organization database.

In Israel there is no registry of multiple sclerosis (MS), thus the prevalence of MS is unknown. Clalit Health Services (CHS) is Israel's largest health care organization. We have developed an algorithm to identify people with MS (PwMS) using CHS database and validated it against a gold-standard diagnosis by expert neurologists.

Polysomnography parameters in a large cohort of people with multiple sclerosis.

Background: Disordered and disturbed sleep is quite common among people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). It is associated with fatigue one of most disabling symptoms in MS. This study aims at comparing polysomnographic (PSG) sleep parameters in a large single cohort of PwMS from a single center to that of the published norms.

De-escalation of Disease-Modifying Therapy for People with Multiple Sclerosis Due to Safety Considerations: Characterizing 1-Year Outcomes in 25 People Who Switched from Ocrelizumab to Diroximel Fumarate.

Introduction: Switching disease-modifying therapy (DMT) may be considered for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) if a patient's current therapy is no longer optimal. This was particularly important during the recent COVID-19 pandemic because of considerations around immune deficiency and impaired vaccine response associated with B cell-depleting DMTs. This real-world, single-center study aimed to evaluate change or decline in functional ability and overall disease stability in people with RRMS who were switched from B cell-depleting ocrelizumab (OCRE) to diroximel fumarate (DRF) because of safety concern related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Exploring the relationship between manual dexterity and cognition in people with multiple sclerosis: 9-hole peg and multiple cognitive functions.

Aim And Rationale: Problems with manual dexterity and cognition impact the everyday performance of people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). Accumulated findings point to the relationship between deficits in manual dexterity and auditory domains of cognition with a lack of evidence on visuospatial and verbal aspects of cognitive functioning. Therefore, this study explores the relationship between manual dexterity and cognition in a cohort of PwMS.

Multiple Sclerosis, Fatigue, Expanded Disability Status Scale: A Cross-Sectional Exploration of Sleep Efficiency and Quantitative Sleep Parameters.

Background: Poor sleep quality and sleep disorders are more prevalent in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS) than in the general population. Poor sleep has been correlated with worse MS outcomes. Sleep efficiency (SE) is one of the most sensitive markers of sleep quality.

Peering further into the mind's eye: combining visual evoked potential and optical coherence tomography measures enhances insight into the variance in cognitive functioning in multiple sclerosis.

Background: Spectral Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) and Visual Evoked Potentials (VEPs) have both emerged as potentially useful biomarkers of cognitive decline in people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). Their combined use may provide additional predictive value for identifying disease impact, progression, and remyelination capacity above-and-beyond what is captured using either approach alone.

Objective: We examined the relationship between OCT/VEP measures and cognitive functioning in 205 PwMS.

Risk of breakthrough COVID-19 after vaccination among people with multiple sclerosis on disease-modifying therapies.

Background: Disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) for people with multiple sclerosis (pwMS) may decrease vaccine effectiveness. We aimed to explore the association between various DMTs and the risk for breakthrough COVID-19.

Methods: Population-based data from Clalit Health Services, Israel's largest healthcare organization, were used.

Cognitive impairment, fatigue and depression in multiple sclerosis: Is there a difference between benign and non-benign MS?

Introduction: Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory and degenerative disease of the central nervous system (CNS). The severity of disability in people with MS (PwMS) is generally measured with the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS). A variant of MS known as 'benign MS' (BMS) has been defined as an EDSS score of 3 or lower, combined with a disease duration of 10 years or longer; however, there is disagreement in the field about whether BMS really exists.

Safety of lumbar puncture for people who are treated with ADP receptor antagonists.

Background: Current guidelines state that clopidogrel and other adenosine-diphosphate receptor antagonists (ADPra) should be stopped for at least 7 days before lumbar puncture (LP). This practice may delay the diagnosis of treatable neurological emergencies and may increase the risk of cardiovascular morbidity due to withholding antiplatelets. We aimed to summarize all cases under our care, in which LP was performed without discontinued ADPra.

Cognitive impairment in people with multiple sclerosis: Perception vs. performance - factors that drive perception of impairment differ for patients and clinicians.

Background: Neurologists' perceptions of the presence of cognitive impairment (CI) in people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS) may not always align with findings of objective cognitive assessment. The accuracy of self-reported CI in PwMS can also be highly variable across individuals, and may not align with objective measurement of cognitive disturbances. Research suggests that additional factors impact perceived cognitive ability, such as depression and fatigue.

Individual differences in visual evoked potential latency are associated with variance in brain tissue volume in people with multiple sclerosis: An analysis of brain function-structure correlates.

Visual evoked potentials (VEP) index visual pathway functioning, and are often used for clinical assessment and as outcome measures in people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). VEPs may also reflect broader neural disturbances that extend beyond the visual system, but this possibility requires further investigation. In the present study, we examined the hypothesis that delayed latency of the P100 component of the VEP would be associated with broader structural changes in the brain in PwMS.

Prolonged visual evoked potential latency predicts longitudinal worsening of fatigue in people with multiple sclerosis.

Background: Fatigue is a common problem experienced by people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS) and can impact physical, cognitive, and psychosocial aspects of daily living and quality of life. The tracking of meaningful longitudinal change in subjective fatigue that occurs as a result of MS activity may be enhanced by incorporating objective neurophysiological measures into longitudinal assessment. To examine this possibility, we examined the longitudinal relationship between visual evoked potential (VEP) measures and a variety of fatigue measures over an approximately two-year period in PwMS.

The moderating roles of self-efficacy and depression in dual-task walking in multiple sclerosis: A test of self-awareness theory.

Objective: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a debilitating neurological disease associated with a variety of psychological, cognitive, and motoric symptoms. Walking is among the most important functions compromised by MS. Dual-task walking (DTW), an everyday activity in which people walk and engage in a concurrent, discrete task, has been assessed in MS, but little is known about how it relates to other MS symptoms.

Longitudinal assessment of the relationship between visual evoked potentials and cognitive performance in multiple sclerosis.

Objective: Visual evoked potentials (VEPs) can provide insight into disease activity in people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). However, few studies have tracked concurrent changes in VEPs and cognitive functioning over time in MS. To address this, we examined the longitudinal relationship between VEP and cognitive performance in PwMS over a two-year period.

Measuring cognitive function by the SDMT across functional domains: Useful but not sufficient.

Background: The Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT) is a common screen of cognitive function for people with Multiple Sclerosis (pwMS) but growing acknowledgement that people with cognitive impairment are a heterogeneous population suggests that a single screen may provide limited information.

Objective: To assess the adequacy of the SDMT in capturing impairment across specific cognitive domains as measured by a multi-domain cognitive assessment battery (CAB, NeuroTrax).

Methods: 113 pwMS were assessed with SDMT and the CAB.

The relationship between cognitive impairment, cognitive fatigue, and visual evoked potential latency in people with multiple sclerosis.

Background: Fatigue in people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS) can impact physical, cognitive, and psychosocial domains of daily life. The experience of fatigue in PwMS is thought to originate from the central nervous system, particularly for the domain of cognitive fatigue. Here, we tested the hypothesis that fatigue scores in PwMS would be significantly associated with an index of neural activity - the latency of the P100 of the visual evoked potential (VEP) - in line with the notion of a centralized origin of fatigue.

Variability of objective gait measures across the expanded disability status scale in people living with multiple sclerosis: A cross-sectional retrospective analysis.

Background: The Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) is widely utilized in clinical trials and routine care to evaluate disease burden and progression among people with multiple sclerosis (pwMS). However, instrumental gait measures may be more suitable than EDSS to track walking disability in pwMS. In this cross-sectional study, we aimed to quantify the variability of spatiotemporal gait measures within homologous EDSS categories.

Diagnostic yield and recognized barriers of an adult neurogenetics clinic.

The advent of molecular genetic technologies paved a path for the diagnosis of many neurological disorders. Joint evaluation by a neurologist and a medical genetics specialist can potentially increase diagnostic effectiveness by ensuring the exclusion of non-genetic conditions with similar phenotypes and by rationally selecting appropriate genetic diagnostic tools. Therefore, a monthly adult neurogenetics clinic was established.

Mobile-phone-based e-diary derived patient reported outcomes: Association with clinical disease activity, psychological status and quality of life of patients with multiple sclerosis.

Background: The applicability of mobile digital technology to promote clinical care of people with multiple sclerosis (pwMS) is gaining increased interest as part of the implementation of patient-centered approaches. We aimed at assessing adherence to a smartphone-based e-diary, which was designed to collect patient-reported outcomes (PROs). Secondary objectives were to evaluate the construct and predictive validity of e-diary derived PROs and to explore the various factors that were associated with changes in PROs over time.

Visual evoked potential latency predicts cognitive function in people with multiple sclerosis.

Prior studies have reported an association between visual evoked potentials (VEPs) and cognitive performance in people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS), but the specific mechanisms that account for this relationship remain unclear. We examined the relationship between VEP latency and cognitive performance in a large sample of PwMS, hypothesizing that VEP latency indexes not only visual system functioning but also general neural efficiency. Standardized performance index scores were obtained for the domains of memory, executive function, visual-spatial processing, verbal function, attention, information processing speed, and motor skills, as well as global cognitive performance (NeuroTrax battery).

The association between MRI brain volumes and computerized cognitive scores of people with multiple sclerosis.

Background: Computerized cognitive assessment facilitates the incorporation of multi-domain cognitive monitoring into routine clinical care. The predictive validity of computerized cognitive assessment among people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS) has scarcely been investigated.

Objective: To explore the associations between brain volumes and cognitive scores from a computerized cognitive assessment battery (CAB, NeuroTrax) among PwMS.

Mobile phone-based e-diary for assessment and enhancement of medications adherence among patients with multiple sclerosis.

Background: Adherence to multiple sclerosis (MS) disease-modifying drugs (DMDs) is essential for realization of their optimal effectiveness and benefits.

Objective: To evaluate the usefulness and validity of a smartphone-based e-diary as a tool for adherence assessment as well as its effectiveness as a promoter of adherence to DMDs.

Methods: An MS tailored e-diary (MyMS&Me) reminded patients to take their DMDs on time.