December 5, 2023 News by Margarida Maia, PhD With younger age at PPMS onset, higher disease activity can be seen People with primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS) at younger ages are more likely to have higher disease activity, suggesting they may respond better to disease-modifying therapies, according to a review of published studies. “Our findings confirm that younger patients tend to have more inflammatory activity, and so younger…
November 29, 2023 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Stopping DMT use tied to greater long-term disability in MS database People with multiple sclerosis (MS) who discontinue a disease-modifying treatment are more likely to have greater long-term disability than patients who continue with such therapies or go untreated, a registry database study reports. Findings also suggest that patients who self-report better mobility early in their disease course also…
October 30, 2023 News by Marisa Wexler, MS NEDA 3 and 4 ‘hard to achieve’ with relapsing MS, real-world study finds Achieving NEDA ā no evidence of disease activity ā after two years of treatment was not common among people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) at a center in Italy. NEDA more often was reached, however, when researchers didn’t include the first few months of treatment in their analysis, suggesting…
September 27, 2023 News by Margarida Maia, PhD Brain volume loss helps in judging DMT efficacy in RRMS: Review The rate of brain atrophy, or volume loss, may help in determining whether disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) are slowing disability progression in people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), a review of data from 12 published studies found. The analysis, āBrain Atrophy as an Outcome of Disease-Modifying Therapy for…
August 24, 2023 News by Margarida Maia, PhD Using highly effective DMTs early linked to fewer relapses in children Children and adolescents with multiple sclerosis (MS) who receive high-efficacy disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) early on are significantly less likely to experience a relapse than those given a less efficacious drug, a real-world study found. While most patients on moderate-efficacy therapies eventually switched to a more effective one, a…
August 15, 2023 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD DMT use does not seem to affect sleep quality, daytime sleepiness The use of disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) does not seem to affect sleep quality or daytime sleepiness in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), an Australian study finds. However, patients with a belief that DMT use impacted their sleep tended to have poorer sleep quality and report that the medication…
July 21, 2023 Columns by Ed Tobias Why pills became the most popular first DMTs for MS Note: This column describes the authorās own experiences with several disease-modifying therapies for multiple sclerosis. Not everyone will have the same response to treatment. Consult your doctor before starting or stopping a therapy. Times, they’ve been a-changing for disease-modifying therapies (DMTs). When I was diagnosed with multiple…
June 28, 2023 News by Margarida Maia, PhD Early use of high-efficacy DMTs may keep patients on therapy longer Starting treatment with a high-efficacy disease-modifying therapy (DMT), rather than one with lesser efficacy, may reduce the number of times people with multiple sclerosis (MS) switch therapies due to a lack of effectiveness, a study of survey responses from doctors suggests. High-efficacy DMTs often are perceived to have…
May 22, 2023 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Stem cell therapy may be better than some DMTs for highly active RRMS Stem cell therapy is better than Gilenya (fingolimod) or Tysabri (natalizumab) at reducing relapse rates and easing disability for people with highly active relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), a new analysis suggests. In contrast, findings suggest that the efficacy of stem cell therapy is not significantly different…
March 20, 2023 News by Margarida Maia, PhD No rise in MS patients’ risk of relapse seen with fertility treatments Disease relapses are no more likely in women with multiple sclerosis (MS) after fertility treatment than they were before such treatment, a study found. Researchers also observed that almost half of the women receiving fertility treatment were on disease-modifying MS therapies, which may have helped to keep a…
October 25, 2022 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Risk of MS Activity After DMT Stop Greater With RRMS, Younger Age Note: This story was updated Oct. 31, 2022, to correct that in the six months after treatment discontinuation, relapses were reported in 18.8% of RMMS patients and 3.5% of those with SPMS. When multiple sclerosis (MS) patients stop their disease-modifying treatment, the risk of relapses and disease activity on…
October 11, 2022 News by Steve Bryson, PhD RRMS Transition to SPMS Fell With Start of DMTs, Swedish Study Finds The risk of transitioning from relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) to secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS) declined significantly after the introduction of disease-modifying therapies (DMT), according to a large nationwide Swedish study. Data showed that SPMS conversion risk rose by 3% each year before the first generation of…
September 28, 2022 News by Lindsey Shapiro, PhD Kesimpta More Effective, Costs Less Than Most DMTs for RRMS: Analysis Kesimpta (ofatumumab) is more cost-effective for treating relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) than most other disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) approved in Canada, according to a new analysis. The analysis indicated that Kesimpta is generally more effective and associated with fewer costs than the majority of MS treatments, with the…
September 23, 2022 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Survival Much Higher for Patients Who Take DMTs as Directed: Study The likelihood of survival is about 7.5 times higher for people with multiple sclerosis (MS) who take their disease-modifying treatments as directed compared with those who do not, an analysis of data from U.S. veterans shows. The study, “Impact of Adherence with Disease-Modifying Therapies on All-Cause…
August 9, 2022 News by Lindsey Shapiro, PhD Tysabri Beats Other DMTs in Helping With Symptoms, Work Productivity Tysabri (natalizumab) outperforms other disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) in its ability to lessen a range of patient-reported symptoms in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to data from a large real-world study. These symptoms include balance difficulties, sensory problems, feelings of anxiety, bladder problems, vision problems, and…
July 8, 2022 News by Lindsey Shapiro, PhD Early RRMS Treatment Lessens Need for Disability Pension in Denmark Delaying the start of disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) increases the risk of people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) needing a disability pension to compensate for a permanent reduced capacity to work,Ā Ā according to a Danish study. The study, āTime to first treatment and risk of disability pension…
May 31, 2022 News by Marta Figueiredo, PhD Mayzent and Kesimpta Gaining Ground as MS Treatments in Canada Novartisā Mayzent (siponimod) and Kesimpta (ofatumumab) are gaining ground among multiple sclerosisĀ (MS) therapies in Canada, according to the latest Spherix Global Insightsā report. āFollowing an eventful 2021 that included the launch of two new brands ā Novartisā Kesimpta and BMS’ Zeposia ā and generic versions of Biogenās…
March 22, 2022 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Smell Test Might Help Predict if MS Treatments Are Working A measure of the nose’s sensitivity to smell could be used to detect whether treatments for relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS) are working or not, a new study indicates. The scientists noted that their results need to be validated through further study, but said the findings suggest that a smell…
December 2, 2021 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD $100K Grant Awarded to Study How Patients Are Adhering to Oral DMTs A researcher at the University of Houston has received a $100,000 grant to investigate adherence to oral disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) among people with multiple sclerosis (MS), and correlations between adherence patterns and disease outcomes over time. The one-year grant from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality was awarded…
November 10, 2021 News by Marta Figueiredo, PhD AI Proposed to Help Thwart MS Treatment Delays, Discontinuation Patientsā underestimation of their own disease and the cost and side effects of disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) are among the main causes of delayed treatment initiation and non-adherence in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, according to a report from OptimizeRx. These findings help uncover areas for improvement, which the health…
November 9, 2021 News by Mary Chapman UK’s MS Pregnancy Register Seeks Improved Care for Women With MS Itās been a decade since the opening of the UK MS Register, which sought to gain a better understanding of how multiple sclerosis (MS) affects patientsā everyday lives, with a goal, according to its website, toward fueling campaigns for “fair, relevant policy and improved health care.” Now, the…
August 6, 2021 News by Steve Bryson, PhD MD1003 Aids Walking Speed in Progressive MS, But Carries Risks High-dose biotin aided walking speed in people with progressive multiple sclerosis after 12 to 15 months as an add-on treatment, an analysis of placebo-controlled clinical trials shows. However, the therapy failed to improve other measures of disability, and was associated with inaccurate lab test results caused by high levels…
August 2, 2021 News by Marta Figueiredo, PhD Risk of Severe COVID-19 Not Raised by Immunosuppressive DMTs Exposure to multiple sclerosis (MS) disease-modifying therapies (DMTs), and particularly immunosuppressive DMTs, does not increase the risk of developing a severe form of COVID-19, or of dying from the disease, when adjusting for known risk factors, an Austrian registry-based study found. These findings add to data showing no…
June 14, 2021 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News That Caught My Eye Last Week: Stem Cell Trial, Young PWMS and DMTs, Exoskeleton, Tests for Kids Stem Cell Transplant Trial Enrolls First Patient in Minnesota It looks as if we’re moving closer to the day when stem cell transplants become an approved MS treatment in the U.S., at least I hope so. A trial is enrolling subjects to test the stem cells against several…
June 9, 2021 News by Marisa Wexler, MS DMTs Underutilized in Younger Patients, Study Indicates Nearly a third of people with multiple sclerosis (MS) who are younger than 40 are not being treated with disease-modifying treatments (DMTs), even though younger individuals are expected to get the most benefit from DMTs, according to a new study. “DMTs for MS are more frequently used at…
June 4, 2021 News by Margarida Maia, PhD AstraZenecaās COVID-19 Vaccine Safe for MS Patients, Small Study Suggests AstraZenecaās COVID-19 vaccine appears to be reasonably safe for people with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a small study of its use in the U.K. Vaccine side effects were in line with those experienced by the general population, its researchers said, such as flu-like symptoms and sore arms.
May 27, 2021 News by Marta Figueiredo, PhD Mayzent, Zeposia May Lose Ground in Canada, Report Finds Mayzent (siponimod) and Zeposia (ozanimod), the two sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) receptor modulators most recently approved in Canada for treatingĀ multiple sclerosis (MS), showed strong launches in the country, according to the latest Spherix Global Insightsā report. However, due to several internal and external factors, sustained relevance of these…
May 11, 2021 News by Vanda Pinto, PhD Fatigue Prevalence Remains High in MS Patients The prevalence of fatigue continues to be high among people with multiple sclerosis (MS) despite significant progress over the years in therapies that change the course of the disease, a large survey study in Norway found. The findings also show that the frequency of fatigue is higher in…
April 23, 2021 Columns by Ed Tobias Let’s Treat Older MS Patients With More Respect As comic Rodney Dangerfield might have said, older people with MS “just don’t get no respect.” By older, I mean those of us who are 55 and up. By respect, I mean from researchers and some neurologists. So, as I approach my 73rd birthday, I have to tip my cap…
April 2, 2021 Columns by Ed Tobias Why We Still Need to Wear Masks, Socially Distance, and Wash Our Hands “I’ve had my shots, so I’m protected,” a friend recently told me, referring to the COVID-19 vaccine.Ā My wife and I also have received our COVID-19 vaccines. More than a month has passed since our second shots of the Moderna vaccine, so we are protected ā theoretically. But theory doesn’t…