Table 2.
Baseline characteristics of MS patients enrolled in the IF study.
| AD LIBITUM | INTERMITTENT FASTING | P value | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | 8 | 8 | ||
| Demographic characteristics | ||||
| Age, y, mean±SD | 42 ± 8.2 | 40 ± 12 | 0.7 | |
| Gender, F:M | 7:1 | 5:3 | 0.2 | |
| Race, Caucasian : African American | 1:7 | 1:7 | ||
| Antropometric characteristics | ||||
| BMI, kg/m2, mean±SD | 31.2 ± 6.4 | 30.2 ± 5.8 | 0.7 | |
| Waist circumference, cm, mean±SD | 106.6 ± 13.7 | 96.9 ± 10.2 | 0.2 | |
| Clinical characteristic | ||||
| Disease duration (years; mean±SD) | 8.5 ± 8.1 | 7.8 ± 6.4 | 0.8 | |
| EDSS, median (25th-75th percentile) | 3.7 (2.7–5.2) | 3.7 (3.2–4) | 0.5 | |
| Annual relapse rate (2y before entry) | 0.6 (0.5) | 0.75 (0.7) | 0.5 | |
| DMT: | ||||
| Interferon beta | 1 | 3 | ||
| Fingolimod | 1 | 1 | ||
| Tecfidera | 0 | 1 | ||
| Aubagio | 1 | 0 | ||
| None | 5 | 3 | ||
| Steroids given at the relapse: | ||||
| iv steroids (3 days) and oral taper (7 days) | 2 | 2 | ||
| oral steroids (dexamethasone or prednisone-10 days) | 6 | 6 | ||
| PASAT, median (25th-75th percentile) | 53 (39–57) | 38 (24–52.5) | 0.2 | |
| 25FTW, sec, median (25th-75th percentile) | 5.7 (5.1–8.1) | 7.3 (5.1–8.9) | 0.6 | |
| 9HPT, sec, median (25th-75th percentile) | ||||
| Dominant hand | 24.6 (17.8–61) | 23.3 (20.6–32.2) | 0.3 | |
| Non dominant hand | 22.1 (16.1–24.9) | 22.6 (19.6–30.1) | 0.3 | |
| SDMT median (25th-75th percentile) | 36.5 (27.2–65.2) | 42.5 (34.7–54) | 0.9 |
Abbreviations: BMI=Body Mass Index; EDSS=Expanded Disability Status Scale; DMT= Disease Modifying Therapies; PASAT= Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test; 25FTW= 25-Foot Timed Walk reported as the mean of the 2 trials/subject; 9HPT=9-Hole Peg Test reported as the mean of 2 trials for each hand; SDMT=Symbol Digit Modalities Test.