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Background: The MSIS-29 measures the physical and psychological impact of MS. Objective: The associations between MSIS-29 domains and demographic/clinical aspects were examined and trajectories analysed over time. Methods: Data were collected in the Trajectories of Outcome in Neurological Conditions study for a diverse population of people with MS, with follow-up for up to 5 years. Following Rasch analysis, minimal important change (MIC) was computed for ensuing total, physical and psychological domains. Results: Fit to the Rasch model using data from 5921 participants validated physical, psychological and total domains, and the conversion table transforms raw scores to interval-level metric equivalents. These domains showed significant differences across demographic (age, gender, employment, education, and marital status) and clinical (subtype, treatment, and duration) factors with large effect sizes. The MIC scores were physical: 9.1, total: 14.1, which were both above measurement error, and psychological: 5.5 which was not, so 1.6% of participants reported psychological change which was clinically important but not statistically significant. Trajectory analysis showed three groups, one stable and two with significant slopes, improving and deteriorating. Conclusion: The MSIS-29 has shown adequate fit to the Rasch model after accommodating problems with local item dependency, through a bi-factor solution. The domains showed good discrimination across key factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: People with MS (pwMS) have had higher rates of anxiety and depression than the general population before the COVID-19 pandemic, placing them at higher risk of experiencing poor psychological wellbeing during the pandemic. Objective: To assess mental health and its social/lifestyle determinants in pwMS during the first wave of the outbreak in the United Kingdom. Methods: This is a community-based, prospective longitudinal cohort and cross-sectional case–control online questionnaire study. It includes 2010 pwMS from the UK MS Register and 380 people without MS. Results: The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale scores of pwMS for anxiety and depression during the outbreak did not change from the previous year. PwMS were more likely to have anxiety (using General Anxiety Disorder-7) and/or depression (using Patient Health Questionnaire-9) than controls during the outbreak (OR: 2.14, 95% CI: 1.58–2.91). PwMS felt lonelier (OR: 1.37, 95% CI: 1.04–1.80) reported worse social support (OR: 1.90, 95% CI: 1.18–3.07) and reported worsened exercise habits (OR: 1.65, 95% CI: 1.18–2.32) during the outbreak than controls. Conclusion: Early in the pandemic, pwMS remained at higher risk of experiencing anxiety and depression than the general population. It is important that multidisciplinary teams improve their support for the wellbeing of pwMS, who are vulnerable to the negative effects of the pandemic on their lifestyle and social support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]