Cognitive Assessment and Performance Validity in Neuroinflammatory Disorders: Methods, Mechanisms, and Clinical Translation

Cognitive difficulties are frequent and clinically significant in neuroinflammatory disorders, including multiple sclerosis and related conditions. However, their accurate assessment remains challenging. Cognitive outcomes can be shaped by fatigue, mood, pain, sleep, medication effects, neurological status and engagement with testing. Performance and symptom validity assessment is therefore essential for interpreting neuropsychological findings, yet its use, measurement properties and clinical implementation remain uneven across settings. There is a need for research that strengthens the validity, fairness and practical usefulness of cognitive assessment in neuroinflammatory populations.This Research Topic aims to bring together clinical, methodological and neuropsychological research that advances the assessment and interpretation of cognitive functioning in neuroinflammatory disorders. The collection will focus on cognitive measures, performance validity, factors affecting test performance, and approaches that improve diagnostic precision and clinical decision-making. It will welcome work that connects rigorous measurement with the realities of clinical practice and patient care.We welcome Original Research, Reviews, Systematic Reviews, Methods, Perspectives, Brief Research Reports and Hypothesis and Theory articles. Topics include, but are not limited to:• Cognitive assessment and neuropsychological profiles in multiple sclerosis and other neuroinflammatory disorders• Performance and/or symptom validity testing and the interpretation of cognitive test results• The influence of fatigue, depression, anxiety, pain, sleep and medication on cognitive performance• Validation, reliability, sensitivity and ecological validity of cognitive assessment tools• Remote, digital and technology-enhanced neuropsychological assessment• Longitudinal cognitive monitoring and markers of cognitive change• Neuroimaging, biomarkers and clinical predictors of cognitive outcomes• Cross-cultural adaptation, normative data and equity in neuropsychological assessment Topic editors: Rachel Galioto, Laura Hancock Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/86937/cognitive-assessment-and-performance-validity-in-neuroinflammatory-disorders-methods-mechanisms-and-clinical-translation