An Observational Study Comparing Multiple Sclerosis International Quality of Life Questionnaire (MusiQoL) and Multiple Sclerosis Quality of Life-54 Instrument (MSQOL-54) in Relapsing Multiple Sclerosis (RMS) Patients on Long-term Rebif® Therapy

NCT ID: NCT01141751

Last Updated: 2014-07-14

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: COMPLETED
• Total Enrollment: 334 participants
• Study Classification: OBSERVATIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2005-09-30
• Study Completion Date: 2011-06-30

Brief Summary

Significant data from placebo-controlled clinical trials have demonstrated the efficacy of Rebif in relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) with reduction in relapse rate, delay in disability progression, and reduction in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) activity and accumulation of lesion burden. Multiple sclerosis (MS), a chronic neurological diseases, can have diverse effects on the lives of subjects and their families. In controlled clinical trials, clinical measurement in MS has focused on impairments of neurological assessment using Expanded Disability Status Score (EDSS). The assessment of the impact of MS on the non-physical aspect of dysfunction is not often measured, or reported. Furthermore, traditional clinical measures have not been able to assess the effects of neurological illness on quality of life (QoL), which is becoming an increasingly important topic to neurologists treating subjects with varied neurological conditions.

This observational, one arm, multicentric study is aimed to assess the usefulness of the Multiple Sclerosis International Quality of Life Questionnaire (MusiQoL) instrument in comparison with the Multiple Sclerosis Quality of Life-54 instrument (MSQOL-54 questionnaire) in RMS subjects on Rebif therapy and to assess the effectiveness of Rebif therapy using health related quality of life (HRQoL) measures.

Detailed Description

Multiple sclerosis is a chronic, inflammatory, demyelinating disease of the central nervous system (CNS) and is one of the most common causes of neurological disability in young adults. The neuropathology of the disease is marked by accumulation of leukocytes in the CNS, oligodendrocyte loss, demyelination, axonal atrophy, and neuronal loss. Clinically it is characterized by multi-focal recurrent attacks of neurological symptoms and signs with variable recovery and eventually, the majority of subjects develop a progressive clinical course of MS. The exact cause of MS is unknown, although an autoimmune process has been implicated. Genetic susceptibility plays a role in disease initiation but unidentified environmental factors may also be involved. Three clinical forms of MS are recognized: primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS), secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS) and RRMS. Primary progressive subjects are characterized by slow and steady accumulation of neurological deficits from onset without superimposed attacks. Subjects with RRMS have exacerbations or relapses with subsequent variable recovery (remission). Secondary progressive multiple sclerosis is characterized by the steady accumulation of significant and persistent neurological deficit with or without superimposed relapses.

The concept of quality of life (QoL) is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as an individual's perception of his or her life within the cultural context and value system in which he or she lives, in respect to objectives, expectations, norms and worries. It is a very complex and broad concept, influenced at various levels by the subject's physical health state, psychological health state, level of independence, social relations and relationship with the overall surrounding environment. A critical element of HRQoL is that it reflects the subject's assessment of the impact of his/her illness, not the physician's perspective. Professional interest in the concept of QoL has increased over the course of the past years, particularly within the framework of health care programs for chronic diseases. Health related quality of life measures can be subdivided into generic and disease-specific measures. Generic measures are designed to assess subjects with diverse medical conditions and they may not capture all relevant aspects of a specific illness. However, disease-specific measures developed from generic HRQoL tools may not truly reflect perspectives from the subjects with specific diseases. The MusiQoL questionnaire is a subject focused questionnaire being developed by an independent scientific steering committee in conjunction with MS subjects, neurologists, and health economists since 2000.

OBJECTIVES

• To assess the usefulness of MusiQoL in clinical practice in comparison with the established disease specific QoL instrument MSQOL-54
• To evaluate the effectiveness of Rebif therapy with respect to HRQoL in a longitudinal study in subjects with RMS

This is an observational, one arm, multicentric study. Quality of life data from the MusiQoL instrument and MSQOL-54 questionnaire, as well as physical health outcomes such EDSS, will be collected bi-annually in subjects with RMS.

Conditions

Multiple Sclerosis, Relapsing-Remitting

Study Design

• Observational Model Type: COHORT
• Study Time Perspective: PROSPECTIVE

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• Subjects eligible for Rebif therapy according to indications and clinical use in the Rebif Product Monograph (and subject who agreed to start on Rebif therapy)
• Subjects who have read, understood, signed and dated the informed consent form

Exclusion Criteria

• Subjects who are unable to fill in the questionnaires by him/herself
• Subjects who have used disease modifying drugs within the last month (or 30 days) prior to study Day 1

• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Sponsors

Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany

INDUSTRY

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Responsibility Role: SPONSOR

Principal Investigators

Medical Responsible

Role: STUDY_DIRECTOR

EMD Serono, a division of EMD Inc., Canada

References

Vickrey BG, Lee L, Moore F, Moriarty P. EDSS Change Relates to Physical HRQoL While Relapse Occurrence Relates to Overall HRQoL in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis Receiving Subcutaneous Interferon beta -1a. Mult Scler Int. 2015;2015:631989. doi: 10.1155/2015/631989. Epub 2015 Jul 5.

Reference Type: DERIVED

PMID: 26236506 (View on PubMed)

Other Identifiers

00066

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id