Photo Credit: Purrfect
Researchers found poorer cardiorespiratory fitness and body composition in advanced MS but noted that physiological fitness can preserve function for patients.
Characterizing physiological fitness, which includes cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) and body composition, is important for the development of tailored interventions and strategies to improve well-being across the spectrum of disability for patients with MS. Existing research has looked at fitness in individuals with mild-to-moderate MS; however, little is known about physiological fitness in the population of patients with advanced MS.
This research gap led Arthur R. Chaves, PhD, and colleagues to conduct a study to characterize CRF and body composition and their associations with fatigue, QOL, and function in patients with advanced MS, defined as an Expanded Disability Severity Scale (EDSS) score of 7.0 or greater. Multiple Sclerosis and Related Disorders published their findings.
The cross-sectional analysis included 18 patients with advanced MS (mean age 60.7 years; median EDSS=7.5) who underwent a cardiopulmonary exercise test and dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry scanning. The primary outcome measures included peak volume of oxygen uptake (V̇O2peak) and whole and regional body fat, lean mass, bone mineral content, and bone density. The researchers also collected symptoms of fatigue (Modified Fatigue Impact Scale), QOL (29-item MS Impact Scale), and daily function (Late-Life Function and Disability Instrument, LLFDI).
Role of Physiological Fitness in Advanced MS
“This is the first study to assess CRF and body composition in people with advanced MS (EDSS ≥7.0),” the investigators wrote. “Overall, we observed poorer CRF and body composition compared to prior studies involving people with MS with lower disability levels. We noted correlations between some CRF variables, fatigue symptoms, quality of life, and function.”
Results showed that patients exhibited particularly low CRF levels (V̇O2peak=9.8 mL/min/kg) and poor body composition (ie, lower mean mass, bone mineral content, and density) compared with previous studies in the general population and in patients with MS with lower disability. The researchers noted that V̇O2peak was most consistently associated with lower and upper extremity function (LLFDI scores, rs≥0.637; P≤0.004).
“These findings reinforce the potential importance of physiological fitness to preserve function in people with advanced MS,” Dr. Chaves and colleagues wrote.
