Physical Activity Moderates the Association Between Pain and Depressive Symptoms Among Persons with Multiple Sclerosis.

OBJECTIVE: The present study examined physical activity as a possible moderator in the relationship between pain and depressive symptoms among persons with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). METHOD: Fifty-three PwMS completed a comprehensive neuropsychological test battery and psychosocial questionnaires. Pain was operationalized as a composite of measures from the Brief Pain Inventory. Metabolic equivalents (METs) of energy expended during self-reported vigorous activity (VA), moderate activity (MA), and walking, as well as global physical activity which combined the three, were derived from the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form. Self-reported physical activity was measured using the Cognitive Health Questionnaire Exercise Scale. Regressions on depressive symptoms (Beck Depression Inventory-Fast Screen) examining both conceptualizations of physical activity, pain, and their interactions were explored. RESULTS: Regression analyses revealed that interactions between pain and each measure of global physical activity were significant (p = .01). Simple effects tests revealed that pain only influenced depressive symptoms in PwMS with low global physical activity METs (p < .001) and low overall self-reported physical activity (p < .001). The separate interactions between pain and METs during self-reported VA, MA, and walking on depressive symptoms were not significant. CONCLUSION: We found that global physical activity moderated the relationship between pain and depressive symptoms in MS. Specifically, pain influenced depressive symptoms in PwMS who engaged in less overall physical activity. These results highlight the importance of screening PwMS for pain and suggest that behavioral interventions aimed at increasing overall lifestyle physical activity may be useful in improving depressive outcomes in PwMS with pain.

Cognitive Reserve Moderates the Effects of Fatigue and Depressive Symptoms in Multiple Sclerosis.

To investigate cognitive reserve as a possible moderator in the relationship between fatigue and depressive symptoms in persons with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). Fifty-three PwMS (37 female; mean age, 52.66; mean education, 14.81) completed comprehensive neuropsychological testing and psychosocial questionnaires assessing the perceived effects of fatigue (Fatigue Impact Scale) and depressive symptoms (Beck Depression Inventory-Fast Screen). Cognitive reserve (CR) was operationalized as Fixed CR and Malleable CR. Fixed CR was quantified as the standardized mean of years of education and a vocabulary-based estimate of premorbid intelligence. Malleable CR was quantified as the standardized mean of cognitive exertion, exercise, and socializing items from the Cognitive Health Questionnaire. Regressions on depressive symptoms examining fatigue, both conceptualizations of CR, and their interactions were explored. A Bonferroni correction was used; results were considered significant at an alpha level of p < .01. The interactions between fatigue and both conceptualizations of CR were significant, p = .005 (Fixed CR); p = .004 (Malleable CR). Simple effects tests revealed that fatigue only predicted depressive symptoms in PwMS with low Fixed CR or low Malleable CR (p's < .001), and not in those with high Fixed or high Malleable CR (p > .01). Cognitive reserve moderated the relationship between fatigue and depressive symptoms in PwMS. Specifically, fatigue does not appear to influence depression in PwMS with high cognitive reserve. Having higher cognitive reserve (either Fixed or Malleable) may reduce the likelihood that fatigue will lead to depressive symptoms in MS.

Affective Disturbance and Neurocognitive Variability in College Athletes.

OBJECTIVE: Research on the neurocognitive effects of comorbid mood/anxiety disturbance in college athletes is limited. Previous research found that athletes with comorbid depression/anxiety performed worse on measures of attention/processing speed (A/PS) at baseline compared to healthy controls. However, this work solely examined mean performance. The current study expands upon this work by examining intraindividual variability (IIV) in relation to affective disturbance. METHOD: 835 (M = 624, F = 211) collegiate athletes completed baseline neuropsychological testing. Athletes were separated into four groups (Healthy Mood [n = 582], Depression Alone [n = 137], Anxiety Alone [n = 54], and Co-Occurring Depression/Anxiety [n = 62]) based on self-reported anxiety and depression. IIV was examined globally and within composites of A/PS and memory via intraindividual standard deviation, with higher scores indicating greater variability. RESULTS: Linear regression results revealed that the Co-Occurring Depression/Anxiety group exhibited greater variability within the memory composite compared to the Healthy Mood group, as well as the Depression Alone and Anxiety Alone groups. The Depression Alone and Anxiety Alone groups did not differ from the Healthy Mood group on memory IIV. None of the groups differed on A/PS or global IIV. CONCLUSIONS: Athletes with co-occurring depression/anxiety demonstrated greater variability in performance on memory tasks. Greater dispersion is predictive of greater cognitive decline following concussion; therefore, it is important that neuropsychological performance is interpreted beyond measures of central tendency. These findings also highlight the importance of having baseline data available for athletes with affective disturbance, as these factors may influence performance, place athlete at risk for poorer outcomes, and skew future post-concussion comparisons.

Subjective Report, Objective Neurocognitive Performance, and "Invisible Symptoms" in Multiple Sclerosis.

BACKGROUND: Self- and informant-report measures are often useful in predicting objective cognitive performance; however, the relationship between these reports and mood, anxiety, and fatigue requires further examination. Additionally, it remains unclear as to how these factors might be associated with objective neurocognitive performance. METHODS: Eighty-six persons with multiple sclerosis (PwMS; F = 65, M = 21) completed a comprehensive neuropsychological battery that included objective neurocognitive measures, subjective reports of neurocognitive function with the Multiple Sclerosis Neuropsychological Screening Questionnaire (MSNQ) Self-Report (MSNQ-S) and Informant-Report (MSNQ-I), and self-report measures of anxiety, depression, and fatigue. Hierarchical linear regressions were conducted with depression, anxiety, the interaction between depression and anxiety, cognitive fatigue, and physical fatigue as predictors. Outcome variables included the MSNQ-S, MSNQ-I, each of five neurocognitive composites, and global intraindividual variability (IIV). RESULTS: Although greater cognitive fatigue was associated with greater reported cognitive dysfunction, it was not associated with objective neurocognitive impairment. Greater depression predicted poorer performance on measures of processing speed and verbal memory, though the effects became non-significant once accounting for anxiety. The interaction between depression and anxiety predicted greater neurocognitive IIV; those with high levels of depression and anxiety demonstrated greater dispersion of scores. CONCLUSIONS: Cognitive fatigue may skew one's perception of their cognition, though it is not associated with objective impairment. However, co-occurring depression and anxiety were associated with greater variability which is a marker of poorer neurocognitive integrity. Our findings highlight the importance of accounting for depression, anxiety, and cognitive fatigue in PwMS, given that they are all potentially modifiable factors.

Functional Outcomes, Injury Variables, and Athlete Characteristics Associated with Post-Concussion Sleep Disturbance.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the relationship between sleep disturbance and functional outcomes following a concussion. Also, to explore athlete and injury-related variables that may be related to risk factors for poor sleep following concussion. METHOD: 124 collegiate athletes completed a neuropsychological evaluation within 14 days of sustaining a sport-related concussion (SRC). Athletes were categorized as sleep disturbed (n = 52) or not sleep disturbed (n = 72). Outcome variables included symptom reports, cognitive performance (mean performance and variability), and mood (depression). Injury characteristics and athlete characteristics explored were loss of consciousness (LOC) associated with the injury, whether the athlete was immediately removed from play, and history of prior concussions. RESULTS: Sleep disturbed athletes reported more symptoms, F(4, 119) = 7.82, p < 0.001, ƞ2 = 0.21, were more likely to be symptomatic at the time of testing, χ2(1, N = 124) = 19.79, p < 0.001, φ = 0.40, and were marginally more likely to experience clinically significant depression, χ2(1, N = 120) = 3.03, p = 0.08, φ = 0.16, than not sleep disturbed athletes. There were no cognitive differences between the groups, p > 0.05. A greater proportion of sleep disturbed athletes experienced LOC (30%) compared to not sleep disturbed athletes (13%), χ2(1, N = 118) = 4.99, p = 0.03, φ = -0.21. CONCLUSION: Sleep disturbances following SRC are associated with a broad range of self-reported symptoms. LOC may be associated with an increased risk of developing sleep disturbances; alternatively, sleep disturbances may increase the risk of LOC following concussion.

Prospective Implications of Insufficient Sleep for Athletes.

CONTEXT: Poor sleep is common in collegiate student-athletes and is associated with heterogeneous self-reported complaints at baseline. However, the long-term implications of poor sleep at baseline have been less well studied. OBJECTIVE: To examine the implications of insufficient sleep at baseline, as well as factors such as symptom reporting and neurocognitive performance at baseline associated with insufficient sleep, for the risk of sport-related concussion (SRC). DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Undergraduate institution. PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS: Student-athletes (N = 614) were divided into 2 groups based on the hours slept the night before baseline testing: sufficient (>7.07 hours) or insufficient (≤5.78 hours) sleepers. Athletes who went on to sustain an SRC during their athletic careers at our university were identified. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Four symptom clusters (cognitive, physical, affective, and sleep) and headache were examined as self-reported outcomes. Four neurocognitive outcome measures were explored: mean composite of memory, mean composite of attention/processing speed, memory intraindividual variability (IIV), and attention/processing speed IIV. RESULTS: Insufficient sleepers at baseline were nearly twice as likely (15.69%) as sufficient sleepers (8.79%) to go on to sustain an SRC. Insufficient sleepers at baseline, whether or not they went on to sustain an SRC, reported a higher number of baseline symptoms than did sufficient sleepers. When compared with either insufficient sleepers at baseline who did not go on to incur an SRC or with sufficient sleepers who did go on to sustain an SRC, the insufficient sleep group that went on to incur an SRC performed worse at baseline on mean attention/processing speed. CONCLUSIONS: The combination of insufficient sleep and worse attention/processing speed performance at baseline may increase the risk of sustaining a future SRC.

Relationship between subjective report and objective assessment of neurocognitive functioning in persons with multiple sclerosis.

OBJECTIVE: Persons with multiple sclerosis (PwMS) are at increased risk for cognitive dysfunction. Considering the impact and potential ramifications of cognitive dysfunction, it is important that cognition is routinely assessed in PwMS. Thus, it is also important to identify a screener that is accurate and sensitive to MS-related cognitive difficulties, which can inform decisions for more resource-intensive neuropsychological testing. However, research focused on available self-report screeners has been mixed, such as with the Multiple Sclerosis Neuropsychological Screening Questionnaire (MSNQ). This study aims to clarify the relationship between subjective and objective assessment of cognitive functioning in MS by examining domain-specific performance and intraindividual variability (IIV). METHODS: 87 PwMS (F = 65, M = 22) completed a comprehensive neuropsychological battery which included self- and informant-report measures of neurocognitive functioning. Scores were examined in relation to mean performance on five domains of cognitive functioning and two measures of IIV. RESULTS: The MSNQ-Self was inversely associated with executive function, verbal memory, and visual memory; it was not associated with IIV. The MSNQ-Informant was inversely associated with executive function and verbal memory, and positively associated with one measure of IIV. The MSNQ-Self showed a correlation of moderate effect size with depression (r = .39) while the MSNQ-Informant did not. CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest that the MSNQ-Self and MSNQ-Informant show similar utility. Our findings also suggest that domains of executive function and memory may be most salient, thus more reflected in subjective reports of cognitive functioning. Future work should further examine the impact of mood disturbance with cognitive performance and IIV.

Coping Style Moderates the Effect of Pain on Depression Symptoms in Multiple Sclerosis.

OBJECTIVE: The present study examined coping style as a possible moderator in the relationship between pain and depression in persons with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). METHODS: Fifty-four PwMS completed a comprehensive neuropsychological test battery and psychosocial questionnaires that assessed physical, cognitive, and emotional functioning. Using four pain indices (i.e., average pain, current pain, pain intensity, and pain interference) from the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI), an overall pain index was created to capture a more comprehensive index of individuals' overall pain intensity and interference. The COPE questionnaire was used to derive three coping indices: active coping, avoidant coping, and a composite cope index that accounts for the relative contributions of both active and avoidant coping. The Beck Depression Inventory-Fast Screen (BDI-FS) was used to measure depressive symptomatology. A series of hierarchical linear regressions were conducted with depressive symptoms as the outcome variable. RESULTS: Regression analyses revealed that the interactions between overall pain and each conceptualization of coping were significant (p = .001-.003). Simple effects tests revealed that overall pain only predicted depressive symptoms in PwMS with low active coping (p < .001), high avoidant coping (p < .001), and less adaptive coping via the composite coping index (p < .001). CONCLUSION: We found that pain predicted depressive symptoms in PwMS who utilized more avoidant and less active coping strategies. Interventions aimed to improve coping style may be effective in enhancing the ability to manage pain and, subsequently, improve depression outcomes in MS.

Comorbid Affective Symptomatology and Neurocognitive Performance in College Athletes.

OBJECTIVES: The current study aims to examine the prevalence rates and the relationship of symptoms of depression, anxiety, and comorbid depression/anxiety with neurocognitive performance in college athletes at baseline. We hypothesized a priori that the mood disturbance groups would perform worse than healthy controls, with the comorbid group performing worst overall. METHODS: Eight hundred and thirty-one (M = 620, F = 211) collegiate athletes completed a comprehensive neuropsychological test battery at baseline which included self-report measures of anxiety and depression. Athletes were separated into four groups [Healthy Control (HC) (n = 578), Depressive Symptoms Only (n = 137), Anxiety Symptoms Only (n = 54), and Comorbid Depressive/Anxiety Symptoms (n = 62)] based on their anxiety and depression scores. Athletes' neurocognitive functioning was analyzed via Z score composites of Attention/Processing Speed and Memory. RESULTS: One-way analysis of variance revealed that, compared to HC athletes, the comorbid group performed significantly worse on measures of Attention/Processing Speed but not Memory. However, those in the depressive symptoms only and anxiety symptoms only groups were not significantly different from one another or the HC group on neurocognitive outcomes. Chi-square analyses revealed that a significantly greater proportion of athletes in all three affective groups were neurocognitively impaired compared to the HC group. CONCLUSIONS: These results demonstrate that collegiate athletes with comorbid depressive/anxiety symptoms should be identified, as their poorer cognitive performance at baseline could complicate post-concussion interpretation. Thus, assessing for mood disturbance at baseline is essential to obtain an accurate measurement of baseline functioning. Further, given the negative health outcomes associated with affective symptomatology, especially comorbidities, it is important to provide care as appropriate.

Relationship Between Self-Reported Concomitant Depressive and Anxiety Symptoms and the Post-Concussion Symptoms Scale (PCSS).

OBJECTIVES: The current study explored how affective disturbances, particularly concomitant anxiety and depressive symptoms, impact baseline symptom self-reporting on the Post-Concussion Symptoms Scale (PCSS) in college athletes. METHODS: Athletes were separated into four groups (Healthy Control (HC) (n = 581), Depression Only (n = 136), Anxiety Only (n = 54), Concomitant Depression/Anxiety (n = 62)) based on their anxiety and depression scores. Groups were compared on Total PCSS Score as well as 5 PCSS Symptom Cluster scores (Cognitive, Physical, Affective, Sleep, and Headache). RESULTS: The three affective groups reported significantly greater symptomatology than HCs, with the Concomitant group showing the highest symptomatology scores across all clusters. The depressive symptoms only group also reported significantly elevated symptomatology, compared to HCs, on every symptom cluster except headache. The anxiety symptoms only group differed from HCs on only the cognitive symptoms cluster. Additionally, the Concomitant group reported significantly increased PCSS symptomatology, in terms of total scores and all 5 symptom clusters, compared to the depressive symptoms only and anxiety symptoms only groups. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that athletes experiencing concomitant depressive/anxiety symptoms report significantly greater levels of symptomatology across all 5 PCSS symptom clusters compared to HCs. Further, results suggest that athletes experiencing concomitant affective disturbance tend to report greater symptomatology than those with only one affective disturbance. These findings are important because, despite the absence of concussion, the concomitant group demonstrated significantly elevated symptomatology at baseline. Thus, future comparisons with post-concussion data should account for this increased symptomatology, as test results may be skewed by affective disturbances at baseline.

Sleep Deprived or Concussed? The Acute Impact of Self-Reported Insufficient Sleep in College Athletes.

OBJECTIVE: Sleep deprivation is common among both college students and athletes and has been correlated with negative health outcomes, including worse cognition. As such, the current study sought to examine the relationship between sleep difficulties and self-reported symptoms and objective neuropsychological performance at baseline and post-concussion in collegiate athletes. METHOD: Seven hundred seventy-two collegiate athletes completed a comprehensive neuropsychological test battery at baseline and/or post-concussion. Athletes were separated into two groups based on the amount of sleep the night prior to testing. The sleep duration cutoffs for these group were empirically determined by sample mean and standard deviation (M = 7.07, SD = 1.29). RESULTS: Compared with athletes getting sufficient sleep, those getting insufficient sleep the night prior to baseline reported significantly more overall symptoms and more symptoms from each of the five symptom clusters of the Post-Concussion Symptom Scale. However, there were no significant differences on objective performance indices. Secondly, there were no significant differences on any of the outcome measures, except for sleep symptoms and headache, between athletes getting insufficient sleep at baseline and those getting sufficient sleep post-concussion. CONCLUSION: Overall, the effect of insufficient sleep at baseline can make an athlete appear similar to a concussed athlete with sufficient sleep. As such, athletes completing a baseline assessment following insufficient sleep could be underperforming cognitively and reporting elevated symptoms that would skew post-concussion comparisons. Therefore, there may need to be consideration of prior night's sleep when determining whether a baseline can be used as a valid comparison.