Impacto de la fatiga y los síntomas anímicos en el funcionamiento cognitivo en pacientes con esclerosis múltiple en brote remisión

Introduction and objectives Fatigue is a common symptom in multiple sclerosis (MS) and is accompanied by mood symptoms subjectively associated with the impact of the disease in daily life. At least 65% of patients with MS present executive deficits. Previous studies have suggested that there is a relationship between fatigue and information processing speed, and between mood symptoms and attention. Little has been researched into how these symptoms impact on other executive functions, such as cognitive flexibility, inhibitory control, multitasking ability and working memory. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between fatigue and mood symptoms with various executive performance tests in patients with RRMS. Material and methods 36 patients and 42 controls were assessed with the BDI-II, a fatigue questionnaire and a neuropsychological battery that included executive functions. Results Patients showed significant differences as compared with controls in all study variables (fatigue, mood symptoms and executive functioning). Both fatigue and mood symptoms correlate with processing speed, attention alternation, working memory and multitasking ability, while only fatigue correlates positively with inhibitory control. Conclusion The symptoms of fatigue experienced by patients with RRMS impacted not only on patients’ processing speed but also on other executive measures. Mood symptoms are associated with attention deficits and multitasking ability impairments.