Attention related performance in two cognitively different subgroups of patients with multiple sclerosis

To evaluate the underlying mechanisms of cognitive decline in multiple sclerosis, two clinically and demographically matched multiple sclerosis groups differing in cognitive status were assessed with attention related tasks. In addition to the attention tests recommended by the Cognitive Function Study Group of the American National Multiple Sclerosis Society, a test of sustained attention was used to evaluate the role of possible fatigue on cognitive performance. The cognitively mildly deteriorated group was slower than the cognitively preserved group and the controls on all tests of attention. The mildly deteriorated group did not, however, consistently differ from the other groups in the error scores of the attention tests. The preserved group exhibited slowness at the end of the visual vigilance test, but no deficits were found on the other attention related tests in this group. It is suggested that dissociable kinds of processing slowness are the origin of the deficits found on the attention tests in the two multiple sclerosis groups. Our preserved group exhibited signs of motor and fatigue related slowness, whereas the mildly deteriorated group also had extensive cognitive slowness. As sensitive indicators of cognitive slowness, attentional tests should be included in evaluation of the cognitive status of patients with multiple sclerosis.