Jeroen Van Schependom

#Neuroscience #MultipleSclerosis #Cognition #Biostatistics

Conclusion:

Dichotomization has its place in clinical decision-making, but for research, let’s keep the richness of the data intact. It’s a smarter path to sensitive, specific, and mechanistically meaningful cognitive biomarkers.

Rich, domain-focused continuous measures can better detect treatment effects, map brain–cognition links & guide targeted rehab—especially with small MS study cohorts.

Key points:
• Continuous scores catch subtle effects
• Domain-specific analysis reveals unique deficits & neural links
• Collapsing across domains masks key patterns

In our simulations (N=50, r=0.3), continuous analysis had 28.1% power vs 15.7% after dichotomizing—a ~44% loss. This can obscure real effects & waste precious sample size in MS research.

Lost in dichotomization: Preserving statistical power and sensitivity in MS cognitive research - Jeroen Van Schependom, Gary Cutter, 2025 Background: Research on cognitive impairment in multiple sclerosis (MS) often reduces performance across diverse domains—such as processing speed, working memor...

New in MS Journal: “Lost in dichotomization” — reducing MS cognitive scores to “impaired” vs “intact” slashes statistical power & hides patterns. 🧠📊 doi.org/10.1177/1352... #MSResearch #Neurology #Biomarkers

We are delighted to announce the appointment of the new Young Academies Science Advice Structure (YASAS) Board, and we look forward to their contributions in shaping the future of science advice in Europe. Discover the new board: scadv.eu/SEDd6eP

the level of misinformation sparked because of this bananas EEG preprint is just really tragic.

By the way if you think that a researcher caused cognitive decline to happen to participants in a study you should probably be freaked out by that

UK cancer survival rate doubles since 1970s amid ‘golden age’, report says Half of those diagnosed will now survive for 10 years or more after advances in diagnosis and treatment

This is what the science machine does. No massive breakthrough. No single cure. Just lots and lots of cumulative knowledge that makes things better…

www.theguardian.com/society/2025...

We hebben 10 nieuwe leden verkozen!
Ontdek ze hier 👉 www.jongeacademie.be/nieuws/nieuw...

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#SmP2025

A New Smartphone-Based Cognitive Screening Battery for Multiple Sclerosis (icognition): Validation Study Background: Cognitive deterioration is common in multiple sclerosis (MS) and requires regular follow-up. Currently, cognitive status is measured in clinical practice using paper-and-pencil tests, whic...

Read more: www.jmir.org/2025/1/e53503

Congrats to Stijn Denissen! 🙌
#MultipleSclerosis #DigitalHealth #CognitiveScreening

4️⃣ What’s next?
We're integrating icognition into a digital health platform with brain imaging & patient-reported outcomes. This could revolutionize MS care by enabling remote cognitive monitoring!

3️⃣ What did we find?
✅ icognition correlates well with paper-and-pencil equivalents
✅ It’s reliable (good test-retest stats)
✅ Shows potential for real-world use in MS

2️⃣ What's icognition?
We developed a smartphone-based screening battery with 3 tests:

Symbol Test: Info processing speed
Dot Test: Visuospatial memory
vBDS: Working memory
Each is based on validated gold-standard tests but adapted for remote use.

1️⃣ Why does this matter?
Cognitive decline is common in MS but often difficult to track due to reliance on traditional paper-and-pencil tests. These are time-intensive, costly, and not easily accessible. Remote monitoring could change this!

🌟 Exciting news! Our new article, "A New Smartphone-Based Cognitive Screening Battery for Multiple Sclerosis (icognition): Validation Study", is now published! 🧠📱 Here's a quick summary:

Time for this to happen everywhere.

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