REMOTE is a feasibility study involving around 200 participants with multiple sclerosis from four UK sites: Cardiff, Newport, Swansea, and Nottingham. Participants will be recruited from those participating in the DELIVER-MS trial. DELIVER-MS is an international, multicentre pragmatic trial that has recruited approximately 800 participants with multiple sclerosis across 30 centres in the UK and US. Participants attend annual in‑person visits for clinical assessments and MRI brain scans.
Two long‑term extensions have now been funded, providing an additional 6 years of follow‑up beyond the initial 3 years. However, long-term follow-up of participants in clinical trials can be challenging and attending in‑person visits is not feasible for everyone due to proximity to trial centres and employment or caring responsibilities. Assessment of function (trial outcome measures) that participants can perform at home may potentially address these issues.
In the REMOTE study, the feasibility and accuracy of remote assessment of function in patients with multiple sclerosis will be assessed. The remote assessments include a general measure of function, a measure of walking ability, a measure of arm/hand function and a measure of cognitive speed of processing. The study may help to build a case for decentralised trials.
CEDAR has been commissioned to conduct an economic analysis comparing home‑based assessments with in‑person assessments, as well as to understand patient experience of these assessments in the REMOTE study.