The TRACK-MS Test Battery: A Very Brief Tool to Track Multiple Sclerosis-Related Cognitive Impairment

Abstract

Tracking cognition in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) is important for detection of disease progression but it is often not performed in routine settings due to time constraints. This exploratory cohort study aims to develop a very brief repeatable tracking tool with comparable test quality criteria to the current gold standard, the Brief International Cognitive Assessment for MS (BICAMS). The study included 88 participants (22 healthy controls, 66 MS patients) who were examined at baseline and at one-year follow-up. As a validity criterion for the six administered cognitive tests, we assessed the difference between MS patients and HC, and the correlation with MS-related disability. Combining the two tests with the highest validity—the Controlled Oral Word Association Test and Symbol Digit Modalities Test—yielded an administration time of 5 min. Comparing this new TRACK-MS test battery with the 15 min BICAMS indicated that TRACK-MS showed larger differences between MS patients and healthy controls, a higher correlation with MS-related disability, smaller practice effects, and a good test–retest reliability. We provide evidence that TRACK-MS, although faster to administer, showed at least comparable quality criteria as the BICAMS. As the study was exploratory, replication of these results is necessary.

Editorial: Insights into structural and functional organization of the brain: evidence from neuroimaging and non-invasive brain stimulation techniques

“…The studies presented provide valuable insights into the complex relationship between drug abuse, BP, dysmenorrhea, WML, FD, and SCZ. These findings contribute to our understanding of the structural and functional organization of the brain in neuropsychiatric disorders and offer potential biomarkers for early detection and personalized treatment approaches (42)(43)(44)(45). Additionally, the use of machine learning to identify brain structure patterns associated with symptoms and impairments could lead to more targeted interventions for individuals with psychiatric disorders (46-48).…”

Unraveling the link: exploring the causal relationship between diabetes, multiple sclerosis, migraine, and Alzheimer’s disease through Mendelian randomization

“…The prevalence of cognitive impairment in patients with MS varies by age and may be difficult to distinguish from other causes (e.g., AD) in older patients (Luczynski et al, 2019;Benedict et al, 2020). A cohort study testing MS-related cognitive impairment found greater differences between MS patients (n = 66) and healthy controls (n = 22) (Taranu et al, 2022). Although the exact pathogenesis of MS with cognitive impairment is still unclear, it is thought to be primarily related to pathological changes in lesioned and normal-appearing white matter, specific neural gray matter structures, and immunological changes, especially to synaptic transmission and plasticity impact (Portaccio and Amato, 2022).…”

The Mismeasure of Change

“…Another study of performance on tests from the Brief International Cognitive Assessment for MS (BICAMS), 6 the current gold standard brief cognitive battery for MS that includes the SDMT, found improvements at the 1-year follow-up on all cognitive test measures. 7 Failure to detect cognitive decline is not restricted to studies with short follow-up periods or patients early in disease course. A 2021 study of BICAMS in an Irish cohort with average disease duration of 10 years at baseline found no significant differences in SDMT and significant improvements in both CVLT-II and BVMT-R ( p ’s = 0.004 and 0.001, respectively) at the 5-year follow-up.…”