# The Educational Impact of Childhood-Onset Multiple Sclerosis

> **NIH NIH K23** · COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES · 2020 · $166,508

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Children with multiple sclerosis (MS) experience a high rate of cognitive impairment, with
studies demonstrating cognitive dysfunction in up to half of children and adolescents affected by
MS. Whether cognitive impairment relates to scholastic achievement in pediatric MS is
currently not known. Dr. Vargas’ K 23 proposal will assess the educational impact of multiple
sclerosis in childhood. Dr. Vargas’ goal is to become a clinical researcher with expertise in the
cognitive, scholastic and functional outcomes of children with multiple sclerosis. Dr. Vargas will
define the factors associated with poor academic achievement in children and teenagers with
MS. Dr. Vargas’s goal is to assess whether cognitive impairment relates to academic
impairment and to define the factors associated with academic and cognitive impairment in
children with MS. This study will be the first study to evaluate academic achievement and
related factors in children and adolescents with MS. Dr. Vargas will test her hypothesis that 1)
children with MS will demonstrate academic deficiencies compared to their healthy peers, 2)
there will be discordance between cognitive performance and academic performance in children
with MS compared to healthy children, and 3) academic performance in children with MS will be
related to psychosocial factors which may be intervened upon including mood, fatigue, sleep
and social connectedness. This K23 award will provide Dr. Vargas the support needed to
develop expertise in 3 major scientific areas: (1) Understanding the advantages and limitations
of pediatric neuropsychological and academic testing; (2) Expertise in outcomes research
methodology; (3) Mastery of advanced statistical techniques and their clinical application. Dr.
Vargas will utilize her clinical-research training in the K23 to lead a multicenter study in New
York City and Philadelphia to define the educational impact of childhood-onset multiple
sclerosis. The ultimate goal is to identify modifiable variables related to scholastic achievement
in children with MS and to target these variables in a large-scale future interventional trial of
academic performance.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9954126
- **Project number:** 5K23HD098312-02
- **Recipient organization:** COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES
- **Principal Investigator:** Wendy Vargas
- **Activity code:** K23 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $166,508
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-06-13 → 2022-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9954126

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9954126, The Educational Impact of Childhood-Onset Multiple Sclerosis (5K23HD098312-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-27 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9954126. Licensed CC0.

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