Using Exercise to Minimise Fatigue in MS

By Brett Drummond

Fatigue is a common symptom of multiple sclerosis (MS), that can range from creating minor difficulties to having a severe impact on quality of life. The causes of fatigue in people with MS aren’t well understood, but it is thought that many factors may contribute. Due to this, it is important to develop a strategy to minimise the levels of fatigue experienced and so lessen the impact on day to day life. One potential technique that has been investigated is the use of an exercise routine. This short review summarises the results of 10 recent studies that have all investigated the use of exercise to help manage fatigue levels in people with MS.

These trials included 233 people with MS and did not discriminate by age, gender or clinical presentation of MS. Of the 10 trials, one trial pre-screened all participants to only include those that reported experiencing constant fatigue. Many different physical activities were assessed including aquatic exercise, cycling, yoga, climbing, walking, resistance training and vestibular (head, body and eye) rehabilitation. Outcomes were measured using the fatigue-severity scale (FSS), which is a 9-item questionnaire designed to assess levels of fatigue and it’s impact on daily life. Using this measurement, 3 out of 10 trials reported effective results (associated with aquatic exercise, resistance training and vestibular rehabilitation). These results suggest that exercise may be beneficial in people with MS, however, the type of exercise undertaken and the effects observed should be evaluated individually.