Psychosocial Factors are Associated With Walking-Related Goal Attainment in Multiple Sclerosis: A Preliminary Study

Many individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS) have difficulty walking, which may prompt a physical therapy (PT) referral. Psychosocial factors, including mood, pain, and social support, may affect patients' participation and overall success in meeting PT goals; however, this has yet to be examined in MS. This study aimed to explore the associations between walking-related PT goal attainment and psychosocial factors.

Participants (N = 41) were individuals with MS from a larger study who engaged in PT per usual care during a 2-year study window. They had at least 1 walking-related goal in their PT plan of care, which could be based on subjective (eg, Multiple Sclerosis Walking Scale-12) or objective measurement (eg, 6-Minute Walk Test). Examined psychosocial factors included impact of pain and fatigue, depression and anxiety symptom severity, and social support. Group differences were examined using bivariate analyses.

Participants who met all their walking-related PT goals had lower levels of pain impact (14.15 ± 5.22 vs 19.14 ± 5.29; P = .004; d = 0.95) and symptoms of depression (5.45 ± 3.53 vs 7.71 ± 3.51; P = .046; d = 0.64) and greater social support (median: 14.00 vs 12.00; P = .019 d = 0.79).

These findings highlight the potential links between psychosocial factors and the attainment of walking-related goals by individuals who have MS. Further evaluation into psychosocial impact on PT plans of care is needed to help guide targeted assessment and intervention approaches.