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Review
. 2018 Mar 12:2018:7835952.
doi: 10.1155/2018/7835952. eCollection 2018.

Decision-Making in Multiple Sclerosis Patients: A Systematic Review

Mireille Neuhaus  1 , Pasquale Calabrese  2   3 , Jean-Marie Annoni  1   4
Affiliations
Review

Decision-Making in Multiple Sclerosis Patients: A Systematic Review

Mireille Neuhaus et al. Mult Scler Int. .

Abstract

Background: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is frequently associated with cognitive and behavioural deficits. A growing number of studies suggest an impact of MS on decision-making abilities. The aim of this systematic review was to assess if (1) performance of MS patients in decision-making tasks was consistently different from controls and (2) whether this modification was associated with cognitive dysfunction and emotional alterations.

Methods: The search was conducted on Pubmed/Medline database. 12 studies evaluating the difference between MS patients and healthy controls using validated decision-making tasks were included. Outcomes considered were quantitative (net scores) and qualitative measurements (deliberation time and learning from feedback).

Results: Quantitative and qualitative decision-making impairment in MS was present in 64.7% of measurements. Patients were equally impaired in tasks for decision-making under risk and ambiguity. A correlation to other cognitive functions was present in 50% of cases, with the highest associations in the domains of processing speed and attentional capacity.

Conclusions: In MS patients, qualitative and quantitative modifications may be present in any kind of decision-making task and can appear independently of other cognitive measures. Since decision-making abilities have a significant impact on everyday life, this cognitive aspect has an influential importance in various MS-related treatment settings.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Proportions of preserved and impaired performance in decisions under risk tasks (a) and under ambiguity (b). Proportion of measurements showing a correlation to the performance in other cognitive tasks (c).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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