Improving the Quality of Life of people with Multiple Sclerosis and their caregivers with a Telemedicine Mindfulness

The aim of the project is to investigate the impact of a MS-specific Telemedicine Mindfulness-Based Intervention the quality of life of people with MS and their caregivers. The mindfulness protocol has been modified according to MS clinical peculiarities and implemented with a multimedia web-based software. One-hundred and twenty MS patients-caregivers couples have been randomly allocated in the experimental or to the control group, in an ongoing study. Subjects in the experimental group have attended a telemedicine mindfulness intervention, while controls have joint a psycho-educational telemedicine program. At baseline, post-treatment and at a 6-month follow-up, participants have been assessed for quality of life and other psychological outcomes. A subgroup of subjects has been assessed with actigraphies, for an objective evaluation of their sleep and physical activity. Repeated measures ANOVA within experimental group subjects showed significant improvement in terms of: Quality of Life, Sleep, Emotional wellbeing, Cognitive Functioning, Psychological wellbeing, Mindfulness, and Fatigue, while no significant changes were found for controls. Data seem to confirm that the intervention has a positive impact on patients’ quality of life. Results will be fully explored at the meeting.