Momentum - Winter 2012

In the pipeline
for MS: Rehab
by phone

Why use telephone-delivered programs? Rehabilitation programs can help people with multiple sclerosis achieve their highest potential—be it physical, psychological, social or vocational—using innovative techniques that can restore function. Such programs, of course, are most helpful if they’re also accessible to people with impaired mobility or to those who live too far away from a treatment center. Telephone-delivered programs can often fill these gaps. (For more on accessing care remotely, see “Telemedicine reaches out, page 41).

OLEG KALINA/VEER

What does the research show so far? Researchers at the MS Rehabilitation Research and Training Center at the University of Washington in Seattle reported on two studies of phone-based programs in 2008. In one study of 130 people with MS, participants showed significant improvements in fatigue, mental health and participation in health-promoting activities (e.g., physical activity, spiritual activity and stress management) after a single in-person motivational meeting followed

by five counseling sessions by
phone (Archives of Physical
and Medical Rehabilitation

2008;89:1849).

In another study, 101 people with MS participated in a single face-to-face session with a rehabilitation specialist, who taught them to implement a home exercise plan, and then participants had eight follow-up phone sessions. Participants in this group showed significant reductions in depression, which was the primary outcome measured by the investigators

(Abstract #P13, Consortium
of MS Centers Annual
Meeting, 2008).

These studies suggest that phone-based programs can provide an accessible option for improving health and quality of life for people with MS.

What are current studies in this area?

Now this team is conducting two trials of phone-based programs, both funded by the National Institutes on Disability and Rehabilitation Research. Both have completed enrollment and the investigators are analyzing the data.

“Take Charge” Study: This study is comparing the effects of two phone-delivered

programs targeting people’s
ability to independently manage
pain, fatigue and depression. The
team enrolled approximately
200 people nationwide with any
type of MS. Participants were
randomly assigned to one of two
“self-management” approaches,
both involving eight phone
treatment sessions.
“InMotion” Study: This
study was designed to determine
whether two phone-coordinated
exercise programs can improve
depression. Investigators
recruited 108 people nationwide
with any type of MS or spinal
cord injury. Participants were
randomly assigned to one of two
groups. In one group, a study
counselor helped participants
to develop a personalized
exercise program, and provided
follow-up phone counseling
sessions. In the other group,
participants received one phone
session only, during which a
counselor reviewed how to
exercise safely and find exercises
that suit individual needs.
The results of these
studies may provide more
evidence for the value of
telephone-delivered
rehabilitation
interventions.