Multiple sclerosis (Houndmills, Basingstoke, England)
June 23, 2026 · via Europe PMC
Cognitive impairment in multiple sclerosis: Where do we stand today?
Amato MP, Portaccio E.
AI summary — for doctors, generated from the abstract only
Cognitive impairment remains common in MS despite effective disease-modifying therapy and should be monitored as a core outcome.
What was studied
Topical review of cognitive impairment from preclinical to paediatric and ageing stages, including cognitive phenotypes and mechanisms.
Key findings
- Data-driven cognitive phenotypes link distinct profiles to imaging substrates.
- Mechanisms include grey matter pathology, network dysfunction and synaptic changes.
- Cognitive decline can progress independent of relapse activity.
Clinical relevance
Cognition should be assessed routinely and considered a treatment target in MS.
Who should care
Limitations
Narrative review, with no systematic methods described and no pooled effect estimates.
Add regular cognitive screening to MS follow-up and do not rely on relapse activity as the sole marker of progression.
This is an AI-generated summary of the published abstract, not a clinical recommendation. It may not reflect the full text or subsequent updates — verify against the original source before acting on it.
Abstract
Background
The therapeutic landscape of multiple sclerosis (MS) has evolved substantially with earlier diagnosis and increasing use of highly effective disease-modifying therapies, leading to marked reductions in relapse activity and delayed disability progression. Despite these advances, cognitive impairment remains highly prevalent.
Objective
This topical review summarises current evidence on cognitive impairment in MS, from the earliest and preclinical stages to paediatric and ageing populations.
Results
Particular emphasis is placed on emerging data-driven cognitive phenotypes, which capture the multidimensional nature of cognitive dysfunction and link distinct cognitive profiles to specific neuroimaging substrates. The review also discusses key neurobiological mechanisms underlying cognitive decline, including grey matter pathology, network dysfunction and synaptic alterations, as well as cognitive progression independent of relapse activity.
Conclusions
Cognitive impairment represents a major source of disability. Implications for cognitive monitoring and management are considered, highlighting cognition as a core outcome and therapeutic target in contemporary MS care.
DOI
10.1177/13524585261457362
PMID
42334424
Research metadata (titles, abstracts, authors, publication dates) is sourced from Europe PMC, which aggregates content from PubMed/MEDLINE, PubMed Central, and other providers under the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM/NCBI). NLM does not claim copyright on abstracts; the original journal publishers or authors may hold rights to the full articles. AI-generated summaries are derived only from the abstract, never the full text, and are always labeled as AI-generated.
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