METHODS: A cross-sectional study was undertaken in which a consecutive sample of 68 MSers completed neuropsychological testing with the Minimal Assessment of Cognitive Function in MS (MACFIMS) battery. Two additional tests were administered, the Stroop Test and a measure of inattentional blindness, i.e., the gorilla in the room paradigm. The gorilla test elicited 2 variables: the ability to detect the gorilla and the number of times a ball was passed between members of one team.
RESULTS: Cognitive dysfunction by MACFIMS criteria was present in 36.8% of subjects. There were no differences between MSers and healthy control subjects on the gorilla indices. Similarly, no inattentional differences were present between cognitively intact and impaired MSers. However, MSers who were impaired on the Stroop and 2-second Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test were more likely than their intact counterparts to detect the gorilla (p = 0.038 and 0.014, respectively), with Stroop-impaired MSers detecting fewer ball passes (p = 0.002).