The Effect of Therapeutic Exercise on Depressive Symptoms in People with Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a neurodegenerative disease of the Central Nervous System including a wide range of symptoms with depression taking part as one of the main sources of disability for patients living with MS [1]. The purpose of this study was to perform a review of the literature on the effects of exercise on depressive symptoms in patients with MS with a great focus on the benefits of physiotherapy, therapeutic exercise, and telerehabilitation.

The review was performed using the databases of PubMed, and other sources such as Google Scholar and Elsevier. The keywords used for the conduction were therapeutic exercise, physiotherapy, physical therapy, rehabilitation, telerehabilitation, depression, and multiple sclerosis. The inclusion criteria consisted of studies: a) published between 2010-2021, b) looking into the effects of depression and/or therapeutic exercise in patients living with MS, and c) written in English. The exclusion criteria used regarded a) patients who were not diagnosed with MS, b) pilot studies, c) case studies, and d) studies published prior to 2010.

Finally, physiotherapy through therapeutic exercise or even with the help of telerehabilitation can improve depression of MS patients. More specifically we observe an enhancement of physical activity, improvement of walking ability and balance while decreasing depression, fatigue, anxiety, and improving sleep.