Interventions to Improve Quality of Life in Multiple Sclerosis: New Opportunities and Key Talking Points

Abstract

Background

Today, living well with multiple sclerosis (MS) is often measured by a person’s overall quality of life rather than being limited to the more traditional metrics of reduced frequency of relapses or progression of disability. This change in focus, to a more holistic view of health, such as overall quality of life, has shifted the views of what both providers and people with multiple sclerosis view as essential for living well with MS.

Purpose

This narrative review aims to examine the relevant literature on existing and emerging non-pharmacological interventions shown to improve the quality of life for people with multiple sclerosis across all health domains.

Methods

A literature search was conducted on MEDLINE, CINAHL, and Scopus electronic databases using the following search terms: quality of life, health-related quality of life, life quality, life satisfaction, non-pharmacological intervention, non-drug, and intervention. After screening the abstracts, 24 were selected for this review.

Results

Common non-pharmacological interventions were used for fatigue and sleep, mental and emotional health, cognition, physical health, and chronic pain. Several non-pharmacological interventions included in this review positively improved the overall quality of life for people with multiple sclerosis. These interventions included exercise, cognitive behavior therapy, and cognitive rehabilitation.

Conclusion

Non-pharmacological interventions such as exercise and cognitive behavioral therapy improve the quality of life for people with MS. These interventions should be prescribed more during routine medical care. Translating this research into standard clinical practice should be one area of focus. In addition, higher quality studies, such as randomized control trials, need to be conducted on emerging nonpharmacological interventions to assess effectiveness.

Keywords:

• multiple sclerosis
• quality of life
• health and wellness
• health-related quality of life

Summary

Some health and wellness needs in the MS population are not routinely addressed in regular medical visits. These health needs can significantly affect those individuals’ quality of life. While exercise and CBT are well supported in the literature as effective interventions, commonly, they are not discussed during routine medical visits. Research attention must focus on translating this knowledge into practice and on high-quality RTCs to clearly show the benefit of nonpharmacological interventions for pwMS. Non-pharmacological interventions do not remove the importance of disease-modifying agents or other medications but increase the number of interventions available to pwMS.

Disclosure

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.