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2016
Journal Article
Titel
The impact of MS-related cognitive fatigue on future brain parenchymal loss and relapse: A 17-month follow-up study
Abstract
Background: Fatigue is a disabling syndrome in multiple sclerosis (MS), which may be associated with inflammation and faster disease progression. Objective: To analyze the significance of cognitive fatigue for subsequent disease progression. Method: We followed 46 MS patients and 14 healthy controls in a study over 17 months. At the beginning (t1) and at the end (t2) of the study participants scored their fatigue, performed the Multiple Sclerosis Functional Composite and received MRI scanning, encompassing MPR T1, FLAIR, and DTI sequences. At t1, MS patients were divided into those with and those without cognitive fatigue (cut-off score for moderate cognitive fatigue of the Fatigue Scale for Motor and Cognition). We calculated ANCOVAs for repeated measurement to analyze the relevance of cognitive fatigue status for the number of relapses and for MRI parameters. Results: At t1, but not at t2, patients with cognitive fatigue showed increased axial and radial diffusivity of corpus callosum fibers.