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Neuropsychological deficits in multiple sclerosis after acute relapse
J Foong1, L Rozewicz, G Quaghebeur
1Institute of Neurology, London, UK.
Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry
|May 12, 1998
Summary
Cognitive deficits in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients during relapse may improve. Reduced brain lesion load correlated with attention improvements in some MS patients, suggesting reversibility.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Neurology
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic neurological disease.
- Acute relapses in MS can cause cognitive and neurological impairments.
- Brain pathology, visualized via MRI, is linked to MS symptoms.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate cognitive and neurological changes in multiple sclerosis patients during acute relapse.
- To explore the relationship between brain pathology and cognitive function in MS patients.
- To assess the reversibility of cognitive deficits after an acute relapse.
Main Methods:
- Neuropsychological testing was administered to 13 MS patients during relapse and 6 weeks later.
- Performance was compared to 10 age- and IQ-matched healthy controls.
- Gadolinium-enhanced MRI was used to assess brain lesion load in MS patients.
Main Results:
- MS patients showed significantly worse performance on attention and memory tests compared to controls during relapse and remission.
- Improvement in attention was observed in patients with decreased gadolinium-enhanced lesion load at follow-up.
- This improvement in attention correlated with a reduction in acute lesion load in the subgroup studied.
Conclusions:
- Neuropsychological deficits in multiple sclerosis patients during acute relapse may be reversible.
- Reversibility appears more likely in patients with initially mild cognitive impairment.
- Reduction in brain lesion load may be associated with cognitive recovery in MS.