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The Association Between Actigraphy-Derived Behavioral Clusters and Self-Reported Fatigue in Persons With Multiple
Philipp Gulde1,2, Peter Rieckmann1
1Center for Clinical Neuroplasticity, Medical Park Loipl, Medical Park Societas Europaea, Bischofswiesen, Germany.
JMIR Rehabilitation and Assistive Technologies
|March 17, 2022
Summary
This study identified distinct behavioral patterns in multiple sclerosis patients, linking activity levels and fragmentation to reported fatigue. These findings help understand fatigue symptoms and guide future research.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Rehabilitation Medicine
- Behavioral Science
Background:
- Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients often report significant fatigue and fatigability.
- Lack of objective behavioral markers for self-reported fatigue hinders MS research and treatment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify distinct behavioral syndromes associated with self-reported fatigue and fatigability in MS.
- To establish objective, measurable correlates of subjective fatigue experiences in MS.
Main Methods:
- Actigraphy data collected over one week from 30 MS patients in a neurorehabilitation setting.
- Principal component analysis of actigraphic parameters to identify behavioral components of fatigue and fatigability.
- Cluster analysis applied to behavioral components to derive distinct patient groups.
Main Results:
- Three distinct behavioral clusters were identified: high activity/low disability, high sedentary behavior, and high activity fragmentation.
- The sedentary behavior cluster showed significantly higher self-reported fatigue levels compared to other clusters.
- Activity fragmentation was a key differentiator, reflecting fatigability.
Conclusions:
- Cluster analysis effectively differentiated behavioral syndromes in MS patients.
- Objective behavioral data strongly correlated with subjective fatigue and fatigability reports.
- Further research should explore volition and processing speed, and conduct assessments in daily life to fully understand MS fatigue origins.
