MS relapse

Living with multiple sclerosis (MS) can sometimes feel like living with a trickster who changes the rules without warning just to amuse himself. One day, you are walking fine, and the next, your legs feel like they’ve been replaced with overcooked spaghetti. There’s fatigue, brain fog, and…

Up to six years of continuous treatment with Briumvi (ublituximab) led to sustained reductions in relapse rates and a low rate of disability progression in people with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), with no new safety concerns reported. That’s according to new long-term data from the…

Most people with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) given Mavenclad (cladribine) did not experience confirmed disability progression for at least four years after starting on the approved therapy, according to new Phase 4 trial data. The results come from the CLARIFY-MS (NCT03369665) and MAGNIFY-MS (NCT03364036)…

Frexalimab, a therapy Sanofi is developing for multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, led to sustained reductions in disease activity in people with relapsing forms of MS over more than two years of treatment, while continuing to show a favorable safety profile. That’s according to new data from an…

Consuming large amounts of ultra-processed foods (UPF) — products high in additives, artificial ingredients, and extensive processing — is associated with increased disease activity in people with clinically isolated syndrome (CIS), which is the first presentation of multiple sclerosis (MS), a study has found. The analysis used a…

Life with multiple sclerosis (MS) is unpredictable, involving many unknowns. Symptoms can come and go, flare up without warning, and affect every aspect of our health, from movement to memory. Managing MS is already a full-time job, and the added weight of life’s uncertainties often makes it even more…

At a recent social gathering, my military career came up, including the more than 100 parachute jumps I’ve done in my life. As usual, someone remarked that I must have enjoyed parachuting, and I had to say that I didn’t because I was actually afraid of heights. That brought the…

One of my more unusual symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS) is itching that is unrelated to skin irritation. It occurs randomly, maybe once or twice a month, and lasts about 30-60 minutes. I have only experienced this symptom in my upper extremities, such as on a finger, thumb, or…

For children and adolescents with multiple sclerosis (MS), receiving treatment with Copaxone (glatiramer acetate) or its generic formulations may reduce relapses by nearly threefold compared with Avonex (interferon beta-1a), according to data from a clinical trial. However, nearly half of patients on Copaxone and one-third of those…

High doses of vitamin D provide clinically modest but statistically significant benefits for adults with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a meta-analysis of published clinical trials. The study found patients who took the supplement saw reductions in disability scores, relapses, and new lesion formation. Those who took vitamin D for…

New or worsening symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS) are often part of the disease’s unpredictable nature, but there’s danger in assuming that every symptom flare is another relapse. When I think back on the course of my disease, I realize I could have made a serious error by making…

Donald Kushner, MD, is a retired physician, board certified in internal medicine and hospice and palliative care. He has been living with multiple sclerosis (MS) for more than 20 years and draws on his dual perspective as both doctor and patient to explore illness, identity, and adaptation. He’s writing…

Enrollment is complete for a Phase 2 trial testing Zenas Biopharma’s obexelimab in people with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). The trial, MoonStone (NCT06564311), is investigating how safe obexelimab is when given as weekly under-the-skin (subcutaneous) injections, and how well it works in approximately 93 participants…

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) may be significantly more likely to have relapses if their Medicare insurance covers fewer disease-modifying therapies, a study shows. The findings suggest that plans with narrower MS treatment coverage may be linked to worse health outcomes, possibly because the therapeutic response to complex diseases…

The night before I was supposed to teach an autoimmune nutrition class, I reentered a role I thought I’d finally outgrown. Instead of educating other practitioners in the functional medicine space, I found myself in the emergency room, listing symptoms I couldn’t fully untangle or explain. I wasn’t there…

Researchers have developed a blood test to identify people at risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS) years before the first symptoms appear. The test, described in a recent study, looks for antibodies against a protein of the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), which is a leading risk factor for MS.

Blood levels of a protein called GFAP, which reflects the activation and damage to support cells in the brain and spinal cord, may help predict disease severity and the response to treatment with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a new analysis of clinical trial data. “This…

Dear current me, Not that long ago, I wrote a letter to our younger self, newly diagnosed with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS). That letter was intended to let her know that her diagnosis was not the end-all, be-all and wouldn’t take away from the beautiful and…

Hormone therapies used in gender-affirming care for transgender people may affect disease activity in multiple sclerosis (MS), a small new study reports, although its researchers cautioned that more research is are needed to more comprehensively assess its impact in MS. The study, “Gender-affirming interventions and prognosis…

Enrollment is now complete in the twin Phase 3 clinical trials testing Immunic Therapeutics‘ oral small molecule vidofludimus calcium in adults with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). ENSURE-1 (NCT05134441) has enrolled 1,121 patients and ENSURE-2 (NCT05201638) has enrolled 1,100 patients at more than 100…

Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) appears to be safe and effective for children and adolescents with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to real-world data from Kuwait. After about 15 months of treatment, more than 90% of patients with pediatric-onset MS (POMS) remained free of relapses, and most also showed no new…

Almost two years of treatment with fenebrutinib — an investigational oral tablet for multiple sclerosis (MS) — helped patients with relapsing forms of the disease remain nearly free of relapses and disability progression. That’s according to new data from the open-label extension of FENopta (NCT05119569), a Phase…

Before I received my relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis in 2016, I underwent a standard MRI exam, with and without contrast, that scanned my brain, thorax, and cervical spine. I’d never had an MRI before this one. I was vaguely familiar with what the machine looked like, but it’s…

Medicaid coverage for people with multiple sclerosis (MS) in the U.S. is associated with worse disease outcomes — including more clinical relapses and greater disability progression — compared with private insurance, according to a new study that investigated the impact of insurance type and socioeconomic factors on patient care. In…

A single 600 mg dose of Briumvi (ublituximab-xiiy) — instead of the approved 150 mg initial dose plus a 450 mg dose two weeks later — was well tolerated by adults with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). That’s according to new data from the ENHANCE Phase…

A Phase 4 observational study called ENABLE is enrolling adults with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) across the U.S. to better understand the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of Briumvi (ublituximab-xiiy) in the real world. At least 500 patients are expected to enter ENABLE (NCT06433752) at some…

No added benefit was found in increasing the dose of Genentech’s Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) — to two to three times the currently approved 600 mg dose — in slowing disability progression in adults with relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS), according to new data from a Phase 3 clinical study. The…

Ena Salcinovic celebrates her birthday three years after her MS diagnosis. (Photos courtesy of Ena Salcinovic) Day 22 of 31 This is Ena Salcinovic’s story: Saturday. Finally. A good day. I still believe that even though I overslept and missed the Red Cross and our weekly international cooking. I…

Starting Tysabri (natalizumab) early in multiple sclerosis (MS) treatment may lead to better outcomes, including greater reductions in relapse rates and less use of MS-related healthcare services over starting it after other therapies. That’s according to a U.S. healthcare claims analysis of more than 1,500 adults with MS.

Tom Anderson, 67, was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis at about 30 years old. (Photos courtesy of Tom Anderson) Day 16 of 31 This is Tom Anderson’s story: I may be the dimmest star, but don’t get all hokey on me. There are lots of us. The following are the…