Table 3.
RCT outcomes in walking ability, QoL, fatigue, and self-efficacy for immediate ePEP group and waitlist-control group at baseline (T0), after six-week ePEP (T1).
| Variable | EG-I (n = 8) | EG-W (n = 6) | Difference between groups | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
T0 mean ± SD median (IQR) |
T1 mean ± SD median (IQR) |
Change from T0-T1 mean (%) median (IQR) |
T0 mean ± SD median (IQR) |
T1 mean ± SD median (IQR) |
Change from T0-T1 mean (%) median (IQR) |
Z-score | Effect size r | |
| TUG (s) | 7.8 ± 1.8 7.8 (6.2–9.4) |
7.2 ± 1.6 7.0 (6.0–8.3) |
0.5 (+7.1) 0.2 (−0.0–1.5) |
7.8 ± 1.6 6.9 (6.1–8.5) |
7.2 ± 1.2 6.7 (5.6–7.7) |
0.6 (+8.1) 0.5 (0.3–0.9) |
−1.033 | −0.28 |
| 6MWT (m) | 483.2 ± 89.7 488.1 (399.1–541.5) |
496.1 ± 128.4 501.0 (396.1–568.3) |
−12.9 (+2.7) −21.5 (−38.2–11.6) |
526.0 ± 117.5 477.6 (393.4–620.9) |
530.5 ± 153.8 532.2 (448.2–639.0) |
−4.5 (+0.8) −17.0 (−37.4–34.7) |
−0.293 | −0.08 |
| FGA (score) | 19.5 ± 4.0 20.5 (15.5–21.8) |
25.4 ± 3.7 25.5 (23.5–28.8) |
−5.9 (+30.1) −6.0 (−8.0–4.0) |
20.7 ± 6.6 25.5 (17.8–28.5) |
23.3 ± 6.9 28.0 (21.8–30.0) |
−2.7 (+12.9) −2.5 (−4.0–−0.8) |
−2.503∗ | −0.67 |
| MusiQol (score) | 68.1 ± 10.6 69.2 (60.6–75.6) |
77.2 ± 11.4 79.5 (66.0–86.2) |
−9.1 (+13.4) −9.8 (−15.8–−0.4) |
70.0 ± 7.8 74.9 (49.8–83.4) |
74.6 ± 11.5 75.1 (62.9–84.4) |
−4.6 (+6.5) −5.6 (−9.8–−0.6) |
−1.291 | −0.35 |
| WEIMuS (score) | 26.0 ± 17.7 28.5 (6.5–40.3) |
22.1 ± 15.5 22.0 (7.3–34.0) |
3.9 (+14.9) 2.0 (−4.0–11.5) |
21.3 ± 6.1 15.5 (12.5–29.0) |
18.8 ± 9.2 11.5 (9.5–19.3) |
2.5 (+11.7) 0.0 (−4.8–9.5) |
−0.195 | −0.05 |
| Mental fatigue (score) | 10.5 ± 10.2 6.0 (1.3–22) |
9.5 ± 8.4 9.0 (1.0–16.0) |
1.0 (+9.5) 0.0 (−1.0–1.8) |
8.8 ± 3.9 7.0 (2.8–10.5) |
7.5 ± 2.3 8.0 (5.5–9.3) |
1.3 (+15.1) 1.0 (−2.5–5.0) |
−0.326 | −0.09 |
| Physical fatigue (score) | 15.5 ± 10.0 19.0 (4.0–22.8) |
12.6 ± 8.3 12.5 (5.8–20.0) |
2.9 (+18.5) 1.0 (−3.0–10.3) |
12.5 ± 5.8 6.5 (4.5–9.5) |
11.3 ± 8.4 7.5 (4.8–22.0) |
1.2 (+9.3) −1.5 (−3.5–7.5) |
−0.523 | −0.14 |
| SSA (score) | 4.7 ± 0.7 4.9 (4.4–5.3) |
4.2 ± 0.8 4.45 (3.8–4.7) |
0.5 (−10.8) 0.2 (−0.1–1.5) |
4.4 ± 1.3 4.6 (2.9–6.2) |
4.6 ± 1.8 4.5 (3.4–6.4) |
−0.2 (+3.4) 0.2 (−0.7–0.4) |
−0.646 | −0.17 |
Note. Positive percentage values indicate improvements and negative percentage values indicate declines; Z-scores were taken from results of Mann–Whitney U test; effect size r was computed using formula r = z/square root of N; ∗ denotes statistically significant difference between changes of scores of the groups (p ≤ 0.05) for exact p value of Mann–Whitney U test (two-tailed). EG-I: immediate ePEP group; EG-W: waitlist-control group; T0: baseline measurements; T1: measurements after six-week ePEP; SD: standard deviation; IQR: interquartile range (25th–75th); TUG: Timed-Up-and-Go-Test; 6MWT: Six-Minute-Walk-Test; FGA: Functional Gait Assessment; MusiQol: Multiple Sclerosis International Questionnaire of Quality of Life; WEIMuS: German MS-specific fatigue questionnaire—lower values indicate fatigue improvement; SSA: scale for self-efficacy towards physical exercise.