OBJECTIVES: MSCopilot^® is a CE-marked software medical device used by multiple sclerosis (MS) patients for the remote monitoring of their disease in four dimensions: walking, upper-limb dexterity, cognition and low-contrast vision. This research explored the relevancy of the usage of MSCopilot^® as a digital tool in PETALS study estimating the total societal impact of MS in France.

METHODS: A patient-based questionnaire consisting of 142 questions was administered to the 208 enrolled participants of the study via MSCopilot^® and email. The questionnaire collected data on patients’ and disease characteristics, productivity losses, employment status, caregivers and the number of consultations with healthcare professionals. The statistical representativeness of MS participants included in the survey was compared with the overall French MS population. The representativeness of the sample was tested using the Exact binomial test or the χ² conformity test. Categorical variables were reported as counts and percentages, while continuous measures were summarized as means and standard deviations (SD)

RESULTS: Overall, 206 of the 208 MS participants were included in this study. Among these, 60.7% were recruited via MSCopilot^® users, while 39.3% were recruited through email. A high response rate to the survey was observed (11.9%). Compared to the French MS population, the sample was statistically representative in its gender distribution (78.6% vs. 73.0% female, confidence interval=72.4%-84.0%, Exact binomial test), younger (42.3 vs. 51.0 years, p<0.0001, χ² conformity test) and composed of 70.9% of relapsing-remitting MS patients. Moreover, 95% of participants reported their willingness to participate in similar studies in the future.

CONCLUSIONS: Driven by the effective response rate observed in this study and the representativeness to the overall MS population in France, this study suggests that MSCopilot^® is a valuable and relevant digital tool for collecting patients’ insights in MS.