The Floodlight MS app, a digital health application used to track dexterity, walking function, and cognition in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), has been deemed cost-effective in a new analysis. Modeling simulations showed MS patients who use the app experience fewer relapses and slower disability progression, which would improve…

Smoking and obesity are both independently associated with faster disease progression in multiple sclerosis (MS), but when both risk factors are present together, a synergistic effect results in faster disease progression than can be explained by either alone. “Smoking and obesity significantly interacted to increase the risk of disability…

Higher blood levels of bile acids — molecules found in the digestive fluid bile, which helps absorb fat in the gut — are associated with a slower progression of multiple sclerosis (MS), as indicated by imaging scans, a study by U.S. researchers reported. In a small clinical trial in…

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) who have multiple comorbidities, or co-occurring health problems, are more likely to experience disease activity and disability progression, according to a new analysis. Results indicate the risk of MS disease activity rises in patients who have at least one psychiatric diagnosis, as well as…

Two weeks ago, I was notified that one of the lesions on my brain has grown. This led me and my care team to decide it was time to switch multiple sclerosis (MS) treatments. Soon after I was diagnosed with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis in 2017,…

Note: This column refers to the author’s own experience with Gilenya (fingolimod). Not everyone will have the same response to treatment. Consult your doctor before starting or stopping a therapy. On a recent Friday, all was calm and peaceful in my household. I was bundled up in my bed watching…

Levels of the immune cell protein CHIT1 at diagnosis, taken from the spinal fluid via a spinal tap, may strongly predict how fast disability progression will occur in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), a new study suggests. Compared with standard clinical measures used to predict disease progression — such…

I have several big milestone events coming up, all within a week. My son is graduating from college and my daughter from high school. Additionally, we have my son’s nurse pinning ceremony, a graduation lunch, two graduation parties, Mother’s Day, and lots of family and friends in town for these…

A specialized imaging approach was able to detect signs of persistent inflammation in the brains of people with multiple sclerosis (MS) that aren’t readily captured by standard MRI scans. This so-called smoldering inflammation was also observed among those patients taking high-efficacy disease-modifying therapies (DMTs), where a higher degree…

Even as a small child, I enjoyed watching nature shows. They didn’t come on television often, but when they did, I absorbed every word. At school, I might not have been able to recite the Pythagorean theorem, but I could say with confidence that butterflies taste with their feet. That…

Low levels of the estrogen hormone estradiol may be linked to worse brain damage, a new study found, offering a possible explanation as to why multiple sclerosis (MS) often progresses more rapidly in women during menopause, when levels of that sex hormone drop. However, the use of hormone…

More activity among certain immune cells, as well as differences in immune signaling molecules, iron regulation, and fat metabolism, may explain why multiple sclerosis (MS) progresses more over time in some people than in others, researchers report. These findings may help to better understand the molecular mechanisms leading to…

Among multiple sclerosis (MS) patients treated with Ocrevus (ocrelizumab), most of the disability worsening they experience is not associated with any relapse activity, according to an analysis of real-world data. “We present real-world data from our multiple sclerosis center underlining that in a typical population of relapsing MS…

The biopharmaceutical company Imcyse has signed on to a new project that aims to use artificial intelligence (AI) to develop tools that can be used to better track the progression of multiple sclerosis (MS). The project’s goal is to help guide treatment decisions for MS patients. Called Clinical…

Infection with the virus that causes COVID-19 significantly accelerates neurological disability in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), at least in the first months after infection, a study from Belgium reported. A more severe case of COVID-19, one requiring hospitalization, also significantly associated with a faster worsening of MS…

Measuring levels of the protein GFAP in blood can help to predict disability progression that occurs without relapses — so-called silent progression — in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), a new study reports. These findings may have “clinical implications for patient management and development of novel drugs,” the…

People with good immune responses against the human cytomegalovirus (CMV), a common herpes virus, around the time of their first symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS) may go on to have a slower disease course, a study has found. Compared with people showing weaker immune responses to CMV, these patients…

Nearly two-thirds of people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) report disease progression independent of relapses, according to a survey involving more than 4,500 multiple sclerosis (MS) patients in Germany. This finding supports evidence pointing to progression independent of relapse activity (PIRA) as an underestimated contributing factor in RRMS.

My weight went off the scale when my multiple sclerosis (MS) meant that I could no longer safely get on the scale. This was probably about four years ago. In them there halcyon days (for me, anyway), I still shared our second-floor bedroom (first-floor, for those of us here…

Most available studies suggest a connection between childhood trauma and multiple sclerosis (MS), from earlier symptom onset to potentially poorer outcomes, but more research is needed to understand this association, a review paper highlights. While several high-quality studies have been published, the scientists noted “considerable heterogeneity [variability] in methodology, including inconsistencies…

An imaging technique called optical coherence tomography (OCT) could be useful for monitoring nervous system damage in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), especially early on in the disease, a study in patients reports. The study, “Optical coherence tomography in multiple sclerosis: A 3-year prospective multicenter study,”…

It is hard to watch the decline in real time. It happens before my very eyes. Like “Groundhog Day,” I wake, I try, and I do. I persevere because that is who I am. I push past the chaos in my body. I don’t see every new pain as…

She held me in a fierce hug. It had been a year since I had held my mother so closely. I rested my chin on her shoulder and silently thanked God. As I looked up, my eyes met hers. I knew what question was coming, along with the weight of…

Retinal Layer Thickness May Predict MS Progression, Relapses We all know how unpredictable MS is. For some, it progresses very quickly, while for others, it follows a slow progression over many years. Wouldn’t it be nice if we knew the course our disease is likely to follow, right from…

Editor’s note: The Multiple Sclerosis News Today news team is providing in-depth and unparalleled coverage of the virtual ACTRIMS Forum 2021, Feb. 25–27. Go here to see the latest stories from the conference. While researchers make progress in pinpointing markers of disease progression in multiple sclerosis (MS), identifying those that signal…

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) show a high occurrence of comorbidities — two diseases occurring in one person at the same time — with psychiatric and cardiovascular diseases being the most common, a new study reports. Having another co-existing disorder was found to have an impact on MS…

Editor’s note: “Need to Know” is a series inspired by common forum questions and comments from readers. Have a comment or question about MS? Visit our forum. This week’s question is inspired by the forum post “Number, Location, Size of Lesions on MRI Can Predict Progression to MS,”…

Myelin is the protective sheath that covers nerve fibers and is damaged in those with multiple sclerosis. Quantifying the degenerative process of myelin would lend perspective to how much and where a patient is progressing. Currently, MRIs are used for diagnostic purposes, but the nuances of progression remain difficult…

The Government of Alberta is investing CA$1 million into a research project that will follow for years a group of people with multiple sclerosis — with varying disease types and at differing stages — to better understand progression in MS. The province’s contribution brings to more than CA$10 million (about…

My happiness quotient correlates with my ability to give. I find tremendous satisfaction in doing this. This is one reason that I cherish Thanksgiving. I derive immense pleasure in creating this symbolic meal for those I love. For a subpar cook, I knock the socks off the classic Thanksgiving…