COVID-19 infection not associated with worsening MS symptoms or disability

For people with multiple sclerosis (MS), having a COVID-19 infection is not associated with worsening MS symptoms or disability, according to a study published in the December 23, 2024, online issue of Neurology^®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

Infections may be associated with more disability among people with MS. However, our study found that for COVID-19 infections specifically, this was not true. This is good news for people with MS, that they do not need to worry about long-term worsening of their MS symptoms after a COVID-19 infection."

Amber Salter, PhD, study author of UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, Texas, and a member of the American Academy of Neurology

The study involved 2,132 adults with MS with an average age of 65. They were followed over 18 months.

Participants completed a questionnaire, reporting whether they ever had a COVID-19 infection that was confirmed by a test.

A total of 796 people reported having a COVID-19 infection and 1,336 people reported never having COVID-19.

Participants also reported the severity of their MS symptoms at least six times during the study. They were asked about walking, hand function, bodily pain, fatigue and memory and thinking. They were scored based on symptom severity.

Participants also reported their level of disability based on how their condition affects daily activities like walking or standing.

After adjusting for factors such as age, race and gender, researchers found that for both those with COVID-19 infection and those without, MS symptom severity increased nominally by 0.02 points per month, both before and after a COVID-19 infection. They found no difference in MS symptom severity between those with COVID-19 infection and those without.

For disability, researchers found similar results.

"Our study indicates that COVID-19 infection was not associated with immediate changes in symptom severity or disability, nor did it change the MS symptoms or disability trajectory for more than a year and a half after the infection," said Salter. "While our study looked primarily at older people and results may not be the same for younger people, these findings help us better understand how this type of infection can affect people with MS."

A limitation of the study was that tests for COVID-19 infection can produce incorrect results, so not everyone who had COVID-19 may have tested positive. Also, people may have had COVID-19 and did not know it.

The study was supported by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.