Studies
| Study Title: | Neurocognition in Adults with Multiple Sclerosis: An Investigation of Executive Functioning, Language, and Reading |
| Rationale: | To elucidate neurocgnitive processes in people with MS, a relatively under-studied aspect of functioning. |
| Study Description: |
Background and Goals: Multiple sclerosis (MS), an autoimmune condition that impacts the central nervous system, is the most common neurological disorder in Canada. Its prevalence affects 0.25% of the Canadian population, ranking among the highest percentages globally. With Canada’s increasing rate of MS, particularly within New Brunswick, developing a better understanding of how the disorder impacts various areas of functioning is crucial. Although much research has focused on the pathophysiology of MS, surprisingly little research has focused on its impact on neurocognitive functions, despite well-documented changes in neuroanatomy and neurofunctionality. Importantly, these functions are central to nearly all aspects of daily life, including economic, occupational, and social activities, as well as routine tasks. Therefore, the proposed research will focus on these neurocognitive functions, including executive functioning (i.e., higher-order cognitive processes, such as attention, inhibition, and working memory, that govern thought and behaviour in a top-down manner), language (across various dimensions, such as semantics and phonology), and reading. Methods: Participants. A total of 80 native English-speaking adults (19-55 years), 40 with relapsing-remitting MS and 40 healthy controls (matched on age, assigned sex at birth, education, and parental socio-economic status), will be recruited from the Fredericton and surrounding areas via social media, newspaper ads, MS support groups, SONA participant pool (i.e., controls only), etc. All participants will be typically developing, with no uncorrected visual, hearing, or learning disorders. Tasks, Measures, and Apparatus. After providing oral and written informed consent, participants’ demographic, language, and health background will be assessed with a Qualtrics questionnaire. More specifically, participants will answer questions on their language background (Language Experience and Proficiency Questionnaire); depression and anxiety levels (Beck Depression Index; Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7); and MS symptom severity, if applicable (Multiple Sclerosis Functional Composite; SymptoMScreen). Participants will complete a battery of behavioural/standardized executive functioning tasks (e.g., backwards digit span, number Stroop, Wisconsin Card Sorting Task, Montreal Cognitive Assessment); several standardized language and reading tasks (e.g., Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing, Nelson-Denny Reading Test; Wechsler Individual Achievement Test), and an eye-tracking reading task. For the latter, they will silently read six (~200-word) paragraphs while their eye movements are recorded with an SR-Research EyeLink 1000 eye-tracker. Comprehension will be assessed after each text (10 open-ended questions), and eye movements (saccades) and pauses (fixations) will be examined (frequency and duration). In addition, participants will complete a separate EEG session, where their brain waves will be monitored while completing a lexical decision task (deciding whether words or real or not on a computer screen via button press). The entire protocol will take 6 hours to complete, divided into 2 (or more sessions), according to the participant's preference. Datasets will be analyzed using linear mixed-effects modelling (as appropriate). All data and materials will be made publicly available on the Open Science Framework, following open-access principles. |
| Starting Date: | 2025-02-13 |
| Ending Date: | 2027-08-27 |
| Who can participate: |
1) Native English-speaking adults (19-55 years) with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis and (2) healthy controls (matched on age, assigned sex at birth, education, and parental socio-economic status) |
| Trial Institution: | University of New Brunswick |
| Trial Investigator: | Veronica Whitford |
| Contact Information: | Veronica Whitford veronica.whitford@unb.ca |
| Trial Funding: | General Start-Up Funds + Internal Departmental Funding |