Here is a summary of the research we have been involved in over the past 12 months:

Goodwin, E., Heather, A., Morrish, N., Freeman, J., Boddy, K., Thomas, S., Chataway, J., Middleton, R., Hawton, A., 2025. Comparative Responsiveness of Preference-Based Health-Related Quality of Life, Social Care and Wellbeing Measures in the Context of Multiple Sclerosis. Value in Health S1098301525056207. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jval.2025.09.3063

This paper looked at how well some of the patient reported outcomes (the questionnaires that we ask) on the UKMS Register performed when compared against each other for the purposes of social care assessments and ‘value’.

Typically our measures are for health care assessments only. This was a new use for our data and a novel study. This study will be important in the future for evaluating costs beyond just medical care as it highlights that there are elements of quality of life that can be missed in a ‘typical’ cost analysis.

Yu, M., Coe, S., Tektonidis, T.G., Solsona, E.M., Middleton, R., Nicholas, R., Neate, S., Probst, Y., Davenport, R.A., Reece, J., Simpson-Yap, S., 2026. Prospective associations between Mediterranean diet and mental health and quality of life in people with multiple sclerosis: Analysis of UK MS Register data. Journal of Clinical Neuroscience 143, 111756. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jocn.2025.111756

Eating a healthier diet, particularly a ‘Mediterranean’ one (fruits, veg, nuts and olive oil) is typically associated with better health. This paper looked to see if there was any evidence towards this that could be found in the UKMSR questionnaire responses. The researchers found some evidence that eating a Mediterranean diet in females lead to better mental health and overall quality of life. The work is evidence that more research is needed into diet and MS.

Yu, M., Simpson-Yap, S., Lerede, A., Nicholas, R., Coe, S., Tektonidis, T.G., Solsona, E.M., Middleton, R., Probst, Y., Hampshire, A., Milanzi, E., Cui, G., Davenport, R.A., Neate, S., Pisano, M., Kirkland, H., Reece, J., 2025. Mediterranean and MIND Dietary Patterns and Cognitive Performance in Multiple Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of the UK Multiple Sclerosis Register. Nutrients 17, 3326. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17213326

This study looked at the association between cognition and a Mediterranean diet. There was some evidence that people that had a healthy diet performed slightly better in some tasks related to cognition – specifically word memory and processing speed. This was a snapshot study, so further work is needed over a longer time period.

Lerede, A., Moura, A., Giunchiglia, V., Carta, E., Trender, W., Tuite-Dalton, K., Witts, J., Craig, E., Knowles, S., Rodgers, J., Cocco, E., Hellyer, P.J., Middleton, R., Nicholas, R., Hampshire, A., 2025. Large-scale online assessment uncovers a distinct Multiple Sclerosis subtype with selective cognitive impairment. Nat Commun 16, 6938. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-62156-4

Using the cognitron ‘brain-games’ questionnaire that has been asked three times on the Register, researchers at Imperial College London discovered a previously unrecognised group of people with MS who seem to have memory and concentration issues despite having almost no trouble walking. This study shows that online testing is a powerful way to find and help people whose MS symptoms are mostly ‘invisible’ to traditional clinical exams.