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Updated: Jun 19, 2026
The Multiple Sclerosis Performance Test MSPT: An iPad-Based Disability Assessment Tool
Published on: June 30, 2014
Executive Dysfunction and Disability in SPMS: Predictive Value of the Frontal Assessment Battery in the UCLH MS-STAT2
Charles Wade1, Anisha Doshi1, Sean Apap Mangion1
1Queen Square Multiple Sclerosis Centre, Department of Neuroinflammation, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, Faculty of Brain Sciences, University College London, London, UK.
Introduction:
Cognitive impairment is common in secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS), with executive dysfunction disproportionately so. The frontal assessment battery (FAB) is a bedside test assessing executive function. This study explores the distribution of FAB scores in a large SPMS cohort and their associations with disability.
Methods:
Data were analysed from 294 participants in a cognitive substudy of the MS-STAT2 trial (NCT03387670). Associations between baseline FAB scores, ambulation status (Expanded Disability Status Scale [EDSS] < 6.0 vs. ≥ 6.0) and other disability measures were assessed using generalised linear models, adjusting for age, education, gender and disease duration. FAB performance was also compared against other cognitive tests (SDMT, CVLT-II, BVMT-R).
Results:
23.8% of participants scored the FAB maximum of 18; 29.9% scored below the clinical threshold of 16. FAB scores showed moderate correlations with SDMT (ρ = 0.46), CVLT-II (ρ = 0.36) and BVMT-R (ρ = 0.43), and participants scoring < 16 were significantly more likely to be impaired across these cognitive domains (p < 0.001). Lower baseline FAB scores were significantly associated with higher EDSS, slower T25FW and reduced manual dexterity (9HPT) (all p < 0.005) at baseline and longitudinally, with performance comparable to other validated cognitive tests.
Conclusions:
We present a large cohort of FAB scores in the SPMS population. Lower FAB scores are associated with both concurrent and future disability and may offer a scalable tool for identifying individuals at greater risk of progression and a robust trial outcome measure.
