Multiple sclerosis: New technology improves cognition

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Multiple sclerosis is a debilitating neurological disease that affects tens of thousands of Americans. While no cure for the illness is yet found, researchers are working hard to understand its causes and mitigate its symptoms.

New research investigates the effects of cutting-edge cognitive training technology on people with multiple sclerosis.

Multiple sclerosis is a neurological disease often causing disabilities that affects one’s muscles, vision, mood, and concentration.

MS is estimated to affect about 250,000-350,000 people in the United States, and 200 new cases of are diagnosed every week.

While there is currently no cure for the condition, treatment options are available for reducing the symptoms. The most common therapy consists of steroid drugs, which have been shown to speed up recovery.

A new technology called transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has been recently shown to improve some of the symptoms of MS. The tDCS device was created by City College of New York Biomedical Engineering Professor Marom Bikson, in collaboration with Soterix Medical Chief Technology Officer Abhishek Datta.

Researchers from New York University (NYU) Langone’s Multiple Sclerosis Comprehensive Care Centre conducted a feasibility study for tDCS, and the results were published in the journal ‘Neuromodulation: Technology at the Neural Interface’.