Retrospective Patient-Completed Questionnaire Exploring Stimulant Medication Effect on Fatigue, Alertness, Cognitive Symptoms, and Quality of Life in Cerebellar Disorders.

BACKGROUND

Patients with cerebellar disorders often experience fatigue and the cerebellar cognitive affective syndrome (CCAS), both of which impair quality of life (QoL). There are no approved treatments.

OBJECTIVE

To test the hypothesis that stimulant medications improve fatigue and CCAS in patients with cerebellar disorders.

METHODS

We administered a questionnaire to 20 patients with cerebellar disorders, assessing the impact of stimulant medications on nine domains: QoL, fatigue, alertness, verbal expression, thinking clearly, and multitasking, as well as emotional state, social interactions, and physical symptoms. Patients also completed the Patient-Reported Outcome Measure of Ataxia, Mental section (PROM-Ataxia MEN), rating symptoms before and during treatment.

RESULTS

Patients perceived improvements in all domains, with 95% reporting improved alertness, 90% fatigue, and 80% executive control. PROM-Ataxia MEN scores improved by 26%.

CONCLUSIONS

These preliminary findings suggest that stimulants may be associated with perceived symptom improvements in cerebellar disorders. Given the small, heterogeneous sample and reliance on retrospective patient-report, further exploration is warranted.