AUTHOR=Riccardi Alice , Ognibene Francesca , Mondini Sara , Nucci Massimo , Margoni Monica , Meglioranzi Ilaria , Carta Elisa , Zywicki Sofia , Miante Silvia , Perini Paola , Rinaldi Francesca , Puthenparampil Marco , Gallo Paolo 

TITLE=Designing a Self-Perception Cognitive Questionnaire for Italian Multiple Sclerosis Patients (Sclerosi Multipla Autovalutazione Cognitiva, SMAC). A Preliminary Exploratory Pilot Study

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Neurology

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neurology/articles/10.3389/fneur.2021.668933

DOI=10.3389/fneur.2021.668933

ISSN=1664-2295

ABSTRACT=<p><bold>Background:</bold> Although cognition in multiple sclerosis (MS) is assessed by means of several neuropsychological tests, only a few tools exist to investigate patients' perspectives on cognitive functioning.</p><p><bold>Objective:</bold> To develop a new questionnaire aimed at exploring patients' self-perception with respect to cognition in Italian MS patients.</p><p><bold>Methods:</bold> A total of 120 relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) patients and 120 matched healthy controls (HC) completed a 25-item questionnaire called the Sclerosi Multipla Autovalutazione Cognitiva (SMAC). The Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT), the Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System Sorting Test (D-KEFS ST), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II), and the Fatigue Scale (FSS) were also administered to the patients.</p><p><bold>Results:</bold> Significantly higher SMAC scores were displayed by RRMS patients compared with HC (30.1 ± 16.9 vs. 23.4 ± 10.4, <italic>p</italic> = 0.003). SMAC inversely correlated with SDMT (<italic>r</italic> = −0.31, <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001), D-KEFS ST FSC (<italic>r</italic> = −0.21, <italic>p</italic> = 0.017), D-KEFS ST FSD (<italic>r</italic> = −0.22, <italic>p</italic> = 0.015) and D-KEFS ST SR (<italic>r</italic> = −0.19, <italic>p</italic> = 0.035) and positively correlated with FSS (<italic>r</italic> = 0.42, <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001) and BDI-II (<italic>r</italic> = 0.59, <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001). Cronbach's alpha coefficient for the questionnaire was 0.94.</p><p><bold>Conclusion:</bold> Preliminary findings suggest that SMAC is a promising patient-reported outcome to be included in MS neuropsychological evaluation and thus warrants being further tested and developed.</p>