Abstract
Background/Study Context: Although cognitive impairment is common in persons with multiple sclerosis (MS), there are limited data on older adults with MS. The current pilot study involved a preliminary examination of cognitive impairments across a comprehensive neuropsychological assessment in older adults with MS compared with older adults without MS. Methods: Twenty older adults with MS and 20 older adults without MS (≥60 years of age) underwent cognitive assessments, including the Trail Making Test (TMT) and the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS). The primary analytical model involved independent-samples t tests on the TMT and RBANS scores. The analysis focused on ½ SD (i.e., Cohen’s d of 0.5) for judging the differences as meaningful. Results: Overall, the study hypotheses were supported such that older adults with MS demonstrated decreased cognitive performance that exceeded ½ SD compared with the older adults without MS. Conclusion: This preliminary study demonstrated moderate and meaningful differences in cognitive performance in older adults with MS compared with older adults without MS. This suggests a clear need for identifying strategies for alleviating cognitive impairment in older adults with MS.
Original language | English (US) |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 346-354 |
Number of pages | 9 |
Journal | Experimental Aging Research |
Volume | 43 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Aug 8 2017 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Aging
- Arts and Humanities (miscellaneous)
- General Psychology
- Geriatrics and Gerontology