Exercise is good for multiple sclerosis, but it must be done correctly

Aerobic exercise is thought to help persons with multiple sclerosis fight fatigue, the most common symptom of the disease. Yet multiple sclerosis also appears to cause the body to heat up more quickly, compromising the ability to exercise.

New research at University at Buffalo (UB) will investigate if cooling the body before or during exercise allows persons with multiple sclerosis to exercise longer, and which method is most effective. The study also will determine the effects of a 12-week aerobic exercise program on fitness, core and skin temperature, and heat flux in multiple sclerosis patients.

The study is funded by a $449,999 grant from the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, U.S. Dept. of Education.

"Exercise is good for multiple sclerosis, but it must be done correctly," said lead investigator Nadine Fisher, Ed.D., clinical associate professor of rehabilitation science in the UB School of Public Health and Health Professions. Carl Granger, Ph.D., UB professor of rehabilitation science, is co-investigator.

"Exercise can build up strength and endurance, reduce Depression and increase endorphins, the chemicals in the brain responsible for positive moods," she said. "We are trying to find out how to reduce the exercise limitations multiple sclerosis places on people."

The study will involve 60 persons with multiple sclerosis and will be conducted in two phases. During the first phase, which will comprise four weeks, each participant will exercise under a different cooling condition each week to determine how different cooling methods affect exercise performance and core body temperature.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a progressive, disabling, neurological illness that affects the brain and spinal cord. Nerve cells normally are surrounded by an insulating sheath made of a fatty substance called myelin that helps to transmit nerve impulses. In MS, this myelin sheath is inflamed or damaged, which disrupts or slows nerve impulses and leaves areas of scarring called sclerosis. These areas of myelin damage and scarring are called MS plaques.

The disruption of nerve signals causes a variety of symptoms that can affect vision, sensation and body movements. These symptoms usually come and go through a series of episodes when symptoms suddenly get worse (called relapses) alternating with periods of recovery, when symptoms improve (called remissions). Many patients have a long history of MS attacks over several decades. In these cases, the disease may worsen in "steps," when the attacks occur. For others, the disease progresses steadily. In a minority of patients, MS causes relatively few problems.