Slowed processing speed is the primary cognitive deficit in multiple sclerosis (MS). However, no studies have examined how patients perceive this deficit. The purpose of this paper is to examine perceived processing speed difficulties in clinical and community samples of MS patients. As expected, MS patients reported more processing speed difficulties than controls. Perceived processing speed difficulties were significantly associated with impulsivity, slowed motor speed, greater anxiety, and increased introversion. In contrast, perceived processing speed did not correlate well with objective measures of processing speed. Findings showed that MS patients perceive their thinking to be significantly slowed. Perceived cognitive slowing was most related to performance on motor tasks and elevated anxiety. Evaluation of anxiety and patient education about objective measures versus subjective perceptions of slowed processing speed may be helpful to MS patients who report significant cognitive slowing.

Pending further research, the SET, a brief, inexpensive, and nontechnical measure of speedy eye movement, may serve as a visual/oculomotor indicator of cognitive impairment in multiple sclerosis.

The results of the current work underscore the need to better understand if, when, and how cognitive performance may be influenced by seasonal variables in MS.

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Results provide preliminary evidence that armodafinil may improve delayed verbal recall in patients with MS. A larger trial showing enhanced memory among patients taking long-term armodafinil could serve as a foundation for its possible clinical use as a memory enhancer in patients with MS.