The present study aimed to evaluate the probable impairment of semantic memory in Iranian MS patients and their healthy counterparts. In this cross-sectional study, 72 patients and 72 age- and education-matched healthy controls were selected. The patients recruited for this study were divided into two groups based on their Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) scores. The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and the Semantic Object Retrieval Test (SORT) were used for screening participants’ cognitive and semantic memory function respectively. MS patients with EDSS scores of 4.5-6.5 were significantly impaired in the memory and naming parts of the SORT, while the patients with EDSS scores of 0-4 were significantly impaired in the total correct answers (memory part). Multiple sclerosis has an adverse impact on semantic memory and patients with higher EDSS scores would have more difficulty with the concepts and their associations.

Keywords