Kessler Foundation to conduct pilot study on improving memory, function in MS patients

Kessler FoundationJan 1 2014

Kessler Foundation has been awarded a new grant by the National Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Society for a pilot study of memory and learning difficulties in individuals with MS. Scientists will test the effectiveness of using of self-generated learning in a treatment intervention to improve memory and functional performance. Yael Goverover, PhD, visiting scientist in Neuropsychology & Neuroscience Research, is the study's principal investigator. Dr. Goverover, an associate professor at New York University, will work with John DeLuca, PhD, the Foundation's senior VP for Research & Training. They will test the efficacy of self-generated learning in individuals with MS who have memory and learning difficulties and in controls. The total pilot award for the one-year grant is $42,185.

"Past research has shown that items that are "self-generated" by an individual, such as words or concepts, are remembered better than items that are simply read or heard," said Dr. DeLuca. The aim of the clinical trial to demonstrate the effects of learning to use a self-generation strategy as a treatment intervention to improve performance of both laboratory tasks (e.g. words and concepts) as well as functional tasks (e.g. activities of daily living). Forty persons with MS with memory impairment, age 18 to 65, will be recruited. Half will receive self-generation training while learning different types of tasks (experimental group) and half (control group) will be asked to learn the same information using more conventional methods (e.g. repetitions).

"Self-generated learning is geared toward helping patients self-discover their own strengths and abilities while learning to use principles of self-generation independently in everyday life situations," noted Dr. DeLuca. "We anticipate that participants undergoing the self-generation-training intervention will show better memory performance, functional performance, quality of life, and satisfaction with treatment and life compared with controls."