Self-management and education are both potentially beneficial symptom treatments that may be recommended to individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS) and chronic pain, fatigue, and/or depressive symptoms, according to a recent study. Adults with MS and chronic fatigue, chronic pain, and/or moderate depressive symptoms (n=163) were recruited from across the US to take part in 2 8-week, telephone-delivered symptom interventions: a self-management intervention (n=75) and an MS education intervention (n=88). Researchers found:

• At the group level, participants responded to both interventions, regardless of disease characteristics, demographics, symptom levels, and cognitive behavioral factors.
• Moderation analyses found significant moderation for fatigue impact but not for pain intensity or depressive symptom severity.

• Baseline patient activation interacted with treatment group to predict fatigue impact at post-treatment.
• Among participants with high baseline patient activation, the self-management group reported significantly less fatigue at post-treatment than the education group.