January 17, 2024 News by Andrea Lobo, PhD Acorda taking over global marketing of Fampyra, MS walking aid Fampyra (fampridine), an approved oral treatment to improve the walking abilities of adults with multiple sclerosis (MS), soon will be sold by Acorda Therapeutics worldwide. The announcement follows the decision by Biogen to terminate a licensing agreement that gave it global development and marketing rights…
October 27, 2023 News by Lindsey Shapiro, PhD Study examines real-world side effects linked to dalfampridine The most common real-world side effects linked to dalfampridine ā sold as Ampyra and with generics available ā are similar to those listed on its prescribing label for multiple sclerosis (MS), according to data from a safety surveillance database. Common side effects included urinary tract infection (UTI), dizziness…
June 24, 2022 Columns by Ed Tobias Why I’m Giving 3 MS Medications Another Try Over the many years I’ve lived with multiple sclerosis (MS), I’ve used several medications to treat my MS symptoms. Some have helped, some haven’t, and some worked at first but then lost their efficacy. I recently returned to three of them that I’d stopped using for various reasons.
December 20, 2021 News by Marta Figueiredo, PhD NICE Still Opposes Adding Fampyra to NHS for England The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in England is set to again recommend against adding Fampyra (fampridine) to the list of medications available to multiple sclerosis (MS) patients with walking difficulties through the countryās national health service (NHS). The poor cost-effectiveness of Fampyra ā sold…
March 22, 2021 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News That Caught My Eye Last Week: Ponvory, Ocrevus, COVID-19 Survey, Ampyra Ponvory (ponesimod) Approved for Adults With Relapsing Forms of MS Add one more medication to the disease-modifying therapy (DMT) arsenal. Ponvory is a once-a-day pill that aims to reduce immune system activity. It’s similar to Aubagio (teriflunomide), which I used for about two years, and which I believe helped…
March 15, 2021 News by Forest Ray PhD Ampyra Aids More Than Walking in MS, But Side Effects May Be of Concern Treatment with oralĀ Ampyra (dalfampridine) improves walking ability, finger dexterity, and cognition in people withĀ multiple sclerosis (MS), an analysis of nine randomized clinical trials shows. But the investigators caution the therapy should be taken only under expert medical guidance, due to its higher rate of potential side effects. The…
April 20, 2020 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News that Caught My Eye Last Week: Fampyra, COVID-19, Vitamin D, Neurodegeneration Fampyra, Aid for Walking, Favored for Inclusion in NHS Scotland I used Ampyra, as Fampyra is known in the U.S., for about a year. It improved my walking a little, but I had to give it up due to cost. It’s been available in the States for a decade,…
October 14, 2019 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News that Caught My Eye Last Week: Mavenclad and Ocrevus Use Rising in EU, Ampyra Patent Appeal Denied, Exercise and MS Pilot Study Mavenclad, Ocrevus Use Rising in EU as Injectables and Tysabri Decline, Spherix Reports I’m not surprised at reports that the use of Mavenclad (cladribine) and Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) is increasing in Europe, or that the use of injectable disease-modifying therapies appears to be declining there. Mavenclad and Ocrevus are approved…
October 9, 2019 News by Grace Frank US Supreme Court Denies Acorda Appeal on Ampyra Patents, Supporting Generic Versions The U.S. Supreme Court gave a green light to generic versions of Ampyra this week, declining to hearĀ Acorda Therapeutics‘ appeal of a lower court ruling that allowed generics of its treatment for walking or gait problems in multiple sclerosis. That lower court rulingĀ came fromĀ the U.S. District Court…
December 19, 2018 News by Ana Pena PhD Ampyra Significantly Improves Walking Ability As Reported by MS Patients, Phase 3 Trial Shows Treatment with Ampyra (dalfampridine) for 24 weeks leads to sustained and clinically meaningful improvements in walking ability as reported by multiple sclerosis (MS) patients with gait difficulties, according to a study analyzing results from a Phase 3 trial. The study, “Assessment of Clinically Meaningful Improvements in Self-Reported…
November 19, 2018 News by Ana Pena PhD MS Therapy Fampyra Again Not Recommended for Use in Scottish National Health System The Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC) issued a negative recommendation on the use of Fampyra (fampridine; marketed as Ampyra in the U.S.) in the National Health System (NHS), for the…
September 25, 2018 News by Janet Stewart, MSc Dalfampridine ER Tablets, Generic Version of Ampyra, Now Available in US, Mylan Announces Mylan announced its U.S. launch of dalfampridine extended-release (ER) tablets, the authorized generic version of Acorda‘s Ampyra, that work to improve walking abilities in adults with multiple sclerosis (MS). Both versions of this medication come in a 10 mg tablet form. Approved generic medicinesĀ are those that…
September 12, 2018 Columns by Mike Knight Out on a Stim: My FES Journey Comes to an End (Part 3) Third in a series. Read parts one and two. In March 2018, I began a personal research project ā quest if you will ā to assess how functional electrical stimulation (FES) devices might help me deal with the foot drop in my…
February 8, 2018 News by Alice MelĆ£o, MSc #ACTRIMS2018 – Ampyra Also Aids Cognition, Use of Extremities in MS Patients Ampyra (dalfampridine), approved to treat walking difficulties in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, also helps with cognition and movement in the upper and lower extremities, according to a recent scientific presentation. These findings were reported at the 3rd Annual Americas Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ACTRIMS) Forum 2018Ā in…
November 20, 2017 News by Iqra Mumal, MSc Fampyra/Ampyra May Improve Walking Speed in MS Patients Over Longer Term, Study Says Available long-term data on Fampyra (fampridine;Ā 4-aminopyridine)Ā suggest the treatment may improve walking speed in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) for up to one year, but more research is needed, a French study reports. The study āMultiple Sclerosis and Clinical Gait Analysis before and after Fampridine: A Systematic Reviewā…
September 14, 2017 Columns by Laura Kolaczkowski Thereās an App (Maybe Too Many) for That! How many hours do the pharmaceutical companies think we have in our day? I ask because almost all of them have come up with very slick tools to use, particularly mobile apps, to help us improve our daily lives with MS. Not coincidentally, these apps also provide their…
July 27, 2017 Columns by Tamara Sellman The MS Alphabet: Fatigue, FGF, Fasciculations and More F Words Editorās note: Tamara Sellman continues her occasional series on the MS alphabet with this second of two columns about words starting with the letter F.Ā Read the first “F” column here. When it comes to multiple sclerosis, mastering an understanding of the disease means you…
July 18, 2017 Columns by Ed Tobias Fighting in Court Over MS Generics Biogen is a big pharmaceutical company that produces a half-dozen MS drugs. Among them are Tysabri, Avonex and Tecfidera. And Biogen is doing all it can to protect its turf, particularly when it comes to its best seller,Ā Tecfidera. Last month the company filed lawsuits against several…
July 17, 2017 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News That Caught My Eye This Week: Stem Cell Cautions, Myelin Mystery, Amprya Study and Zinbryta in the EU In case you missedĀ them, here are some news stories that appeared in MS News Today that caught my eye over the past week. Experts Call for Tighter Regulation of Stem Cell Therapies in Use at Clinics Worldwide I read a lot of comments on various social…
July 11, 2017 News by Stacy Grieve, PhD Long-term Use of Ampyra Lowers Medical Costs, Hospital Visits for MS Patients, Study Finds A recent study has found that continued use of Ampyra (dalfampridine extended-release, sold in the U.S. by Acorda Therapeutics) by patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) lowers both inpatient hospital visits and overall healthcare costs. Results from the study, titled āInpatient Admissions and Costs Associated with Persistent…
May 25, 2017 News by Patricia Silva, PhD Fampyra Granted Standard Approval in Europe as Trial Results Support Effectiveness Fampyra (prolonged-release fampridine tablets) ā sold in the U.S. as Ampyra (dalfampridine) ā has now been granted standard marketing authorization in Europe. The approval was based on the results of a Biogen-sponsored Phase 3 clinical trial confirming the drugās safety and efficacy in improving walking in patients with multiple…
April 12, 2017 News by Charles Moore Court Ruling Against 4 Patents Protecting Ampyra May Speed Arrival of Generics A ruling by the Ā U.S. District Court for the District of DelawareĀ invalidated four of five patents held by Acorda Therapeutics that pertained toĀ Ampyra (dalfampridine), a treatment for walking difficulties in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, raising the possibility of generic forms of the drugĀ coming onto the market in a…
April 10, 2017 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD Ampyra Aided Walking in PPMS and RMS Patients Over Long Term, Neurologist Says in Interview AmpyraĀ (dalfampridine) shows long-term efficacy in improving walking ability in peopleĀ with multiple sclerosis, according to a study evaluating the treatment’s use in progressive and relapsing MS patients over two years. The study, āMonitoring long-term efficacy of fampridine in gait-impaired patients with multiple sclerosis,ā was published in the…
April 10, 2017 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD Transcript of Interview on Ampyra Research, MS Walking Ability and Long-Term Use Multiple Sclerosis News Today interviewedĀ Dr. Linard Filli,āØ an MS researcher at the University Hospital ZurichĀ involved in clinical studies of prolonged release Ampyra (dalfampridine), on walking ability in MS patients,Ā and Dr. Andrew Blight, chief scientific officer at Acorda Therapeutics, the treatment’s developer. Here is a full transcript of that interview.Ā An…
April 4, 2017 Columns by Ed Tobias Ampyra: A Generic for the MS ‘Walking Drug’ Wins a Round in Court Ampyra is marketed as the only multiple sclerosis (MS) drug that is designed to increase an MS patient’s walking speed. Clinical studies show that patients who use the drug walk as much as 20 percent faster. Ampyra improved my speed, several years ago, when I was on…
November 11, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Ampyra/Fampyra for MS Patients ‘Not Recommended’ by NHS Scotland Despite recent studies showing that treatment with Ampyra (Fampyra in Europe; fampridine) improves both walking speed and ability, and offers psychological benefits to patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), the Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC)Ā recently decided to not recommend the drug for use on the National Health Service (NHS) in Scotland.
November 2, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Ampyra Helps MS Patients Not Only Walk Better, But Feel Better Too, Study Reports Results from a Phase 2 clinical trial showed that treatment with Ampyra (prolonged-release fampridine) brought bothĀ physical and psychological benefits to patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). These findings,Ā fromĀ the MOBILE study (NCT01597297), were published under the title, āProlonged-Release Fampridine Treatment Improved Subject-Reported Impact Of Multiple Sclerosis: Item-Level Analysis Of The…
September 20, 2016 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD #ECTRIMS2016 – MS Patients Achieve Sustained Improvements in Mobility with Ampyra A recent study showed that the clinical benefits offered by Ampyra (fampridine) in improving mobility among multiple sclerosis (MS) patients hasĀ clinical significance. The results were shown in an oral presentation, āSustained clinically meaningful improvements in walking ability with prolonged-release fampridine: results from the placebo-controlled ENHANCE study,ā atĀ the European Committee for…
June 3, 2016 News by Patricia Silva, PhD #CMSC16 – Connections Between Brain Hemispheres in MS Improved with Ampyra (Dalfampridine) While most multiple sclerosis (MS) researchers focus on the autoimmune and inflammatory processes of the disease, researchers at the Mind Research NetworkĀ (MRN) believe that improving axonal function might contribute to better MS outcomes. Using Ampyra (dalfampridine), they thoroughly analyzed the function of nerve axon connections between the two brain…
December 22, 2015 News by Margarida Azevedo, MSc MS Patients Show Better Gait and Balance with Dalfampridine Treatment In a new study, researchers evaluated the effect of dalfampridine treatment in people with multiple sclerosis (MS) and observed significant improvements in not only walking speed and distance, but also in gait and balance. The paper, titled āDalfampridine Effects Beyond Walking Speed in Multiple Sclerosis,ā was published in the…