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By Joana A behavioral intervention that teaches people with multiple Earlier results had shown that the approach, which sought to increase activity through changes in everyday life using leisure, occupational, and household activities, resulted in immediate and sustained gains. “This study provides evidence for the effectiveness of a novel, widely scalable approach for physical activity promotion and fatigue management in persons with MS,” the researchers wrote about their study, “Randomized controlled trial of the behavioral intervention for increasing physical activity in multiple sclerosis project: Secondary, patient-reported outcomes,” which was published in Contemporary Clinical Trials. It’s generally recommended that people with MS exercise regularly, with research showing that different activities can improve motor and cognitive abilities and ease symptoms. The standard approach for promoting activity has typically involved structured, supervised exercise programs. These bring considerable benefits, but most patients go back to being inactive after they conclude. Researchers now propose programs that teach patients skills, techniques, and strategies to adopt lifestyle changes to make the everyday activities a person does through planned or unplanned leisure, occupation, or household activities more physically engaging. Positive effects of physical activity A Phase 2 trial investigating this approach showed positive effects on the amount of physical activity, as well as improvements in fatigue, depression and anxiety, in walking function, and disability. That trial compared the behavioral intervention for physical activity in MS, called BIPAMS, with a control group that received no intervention, however. A Phase 3 trial (NCT03490240) investigated the effects of BIPAMS versus a control intervention, called Wellness for MS (WellMS), that promoted general wellness without changes in physical activity. BIPAMS consisted of interactive video courses organized in four modules, which explained the benefits of physical activity in MS, helped patients set goals and realistic expectations, provided strategies to overcome barriers to physical activities, and gave strategies for an active lifestyle. The intervention included 13 one-on-one video chats with a behavioral coach over six months and participants had access to a dedicated website with a personal tracker and activity monitor, as well as discussion forums. In the control intervention, participants had nine one-on-one chats with behavioral coaches about self-managing MS symptoms, but without physical activity. They also had access to a dedicated website with interactive video courses and forums, but not to a personal tracker and activity monitor.
This type of control was chosen to “account for attention and social contact as well as other possible biases such as initial reactivity and time spent on the website and video chats,” the researchers wrote. |
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