People with multiple sclerosis (MS) often suffer extreme fatigue, but teaching them how to conserve energy helps combat the problem, according to a new study.

“Fatigue is a common and disabling symptom for persons with MS,” Dr. Virgil Mathiowetz of the University of Minnesota said during a symposium on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the American Neurological Association. “Occupational therapists often teach energy conservation strategies to help manage fatigue, whatever the diagnosis.”

Mathiowetz and his colleagues assessed the impact of a six-week energy conservation course, taught by occupational therapists, on fatigue and quality of life for 169 MS patients. The participants were randomly assigned to take the course immediately or to delay starting the program, and then were switched over.

In the energy conservation course, patients meet in small groups of 7 to 10 individuals for two hours per week where they discover if they are performing work, house chores, and leisure activities in an energy-efficient way, and learn strategies to save energy.

“We use a banking analogy,” Mathiowetz explained. “You have X amount of money to work with - just like you have X amount of energy to work with. Just like in budgeting money, MS patients can budget their energy.”

In the study, participants in the immediate intervention group experienced a significant reduction in fatigue while taking the course with continued improvement afterwards. Subjects in the delayed intervention group saw a slight improvement in fatigue with no intervention, followed by a significant improvement in fatigue levels during and after the course.

Participation in the energy conservation course also led to significant increases in quality of life.

“This is really the third study where we’ve gotten comparable results with significant improvement in fatigue through essentially behavioral change,” Mathiowetz said. “In almost all cases, after the course there is an ongoing slow but continued benefit over time. We speculated that this is because people learn strategies, but it takes them time to fully implement them and maximize their effectiveness.”