2026 American Academy of Neurology Abstract Website

Objective:

Evaluate provider experience and perceived clinical utility of the multi-protein Multiple Sclerosis Disease Activity (MSDA) blood test in routine clinical practice.

Background:

MSDA is a serum assay that measures 18 biomarkers to generate a 1–10 Disease Activity score, validated against MRI and clinical measures. MSDA is increasingly used by providers who treat MS to complement symptoms, clinical examination, and MRI results.

Standard user experience benchmarks include the Net Promoter Score (NPS) to measure advocacy (≥50 excellent), satisfaction (≥8/10 high) and ease‑of‑use ratings (≥4/5 indicative of low workflow friction). Understanding MSDA’s user experience performance and clinical utility can inform adoption of blood-based biomarkers in MS care.

Design/Methods:

Mixed-methods study of MS-treating providers who ordered ≥2 MSDA tests from January-June 2025: 16 thirty minute interviews, and a web survey to 132 clinicians (27 responses; 20%). Descriptive statistics and thematic analysis were applied to the combined cohort (N=43).

Results:

Provider advocacy was strong (NPS 59; excellent), overall satisfaction was high (mean 8.6/10; median 9.0), and ease‑of‑use was favorable (4.4/5).

Clinical utility spanned the disease continuum, including: establishing a baseline in newly diagnosed patients (88.5%), supporting therapy initiation/selection (77.8%), monitoring while on disease‑modifying therapy (DMT, 74.1%), and guiding de‑escalation/discontinuation (92.3%). Providers also used MSDA to confirm disease activity when symptoms and MRI conflicted, and to monitor patients on immune reconstitution therapies.

Logistical barriers included discussing patient out of pocket costs, and limited access to phlebotomy services. Providers requested additional clinical education to increase confidence interpreting moderate scores and individual biomarkers.

Conclusions:

In real-world practice, MSDA was associated with an excellent NPS score, high satisfaction & ease-of-use, and perceived clinical utility supporting provider–patient decisions. Efforts to improve cost transparency, blood‑draw access, and interpretive support may reduce friction and broaden impact and use of MSDA in routine clinical practice.