Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Mindfulness-Based Therapy for Fatigue in MS: Anthony Feinstein, MPhil, PhD, FRCP

WATCH TIME: 5 minutes

"Psychotherapies, in particular, cognitive behaviorial therapy, and mindfulness-based therapy, might be able to help patients with MS. Some promising clinical trials suggest that these types of therapies are useful. The beauty of this is there's going to be no adverse effects. So that being, there's some hope for people with fatigue."

Fatigue is a symptom that commonly affects many patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), having a critical impact on their daily lives and may also affect their adherence to disease-modifying therapies. Despite the recent progress, understanding the pathophysiology and management of fatigue remains a challenge, hence, the need for better recognition of this major clinical issue.¹

Anthony Feinstein, MPhil, PhD, FRCP, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Toronto, presented in a session that focused on current topics and trends in MS rehabilitation at the 2023 Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers (CMSC) Annual Meeting, held May 31 to June 3, in Aurora, Colorado. The session was focused on fatigue in patients with MS and included a discussion on important clinical questions such as how to assess and manage the disease.²

Following his presentation, Feinstein sat down in an interview with NeurologyLive^® to provide an overview of the key points from the presentation and the next steps to take in terms of researching fatigue in MS. He talked about how brain imaging data contributes to the current understanding of fatigue in MS and how to identify the neural substrates involved.

Feinstein also spoke about the potential benefits of cognitive behavioral therapy and mindfulness-based therapy for fatigue as psychotherapies. In addition, he discussed how clinicians can overcome challenges related to access to psychotherapies to ensure their patients receive appropriate treatment for fatigue.

Click here for more coverage of CMSC 2023.

REFERENCES
1. Pokryszko-Dragan A, Penner IK, Comi G. Editorial: Fatigue in multiple sclerosis-A current perspective. Front Neurol. 2023;14:1150717. Published 2023 Feb 7. doi:10.3389/fneur.2023.1150717
2. Feinstein A. Fatigue and MS: Putting It All Together. Presented at: 2023 CMSC Annual Meeting; held May 31-June 3; Aurora, CO. Part 1: Understanding Fatigue and its Clinical Management.REHAB1.