November 14, 2023 News by Margarida Maia, PhD Study ties central neuropathic pain to more severe emotional burden Central neuropathic pain ā the kind resulting from damage to the brain and spinal cord ā appears to be more severe and widespread and to cause more emotional burden in people with multiple sclerosis (MS) than pain in muscles and joints, according to a recent study. Regardless of pain…
November 9, 2022 News by Mary Chapman Saint Louis University Opens Neuroscience Research Institute With an overarching goal of improving patients’ health and life quality, Saint Louis University (SLU) has opened an institute for neuroscience researchers working in a variety of fields to study disorders of the central nervous system, includingĀ multiple sclerosis (MS). The Institute for Translational Neuroscience (ITN), an outgrowth of the…
January 28, 2022 News by Vanda Pinto, PhD Study: Trigeminal Neuralgia Affects More Than 3% of Patients Trigeminal neuralgia, a chronic pain condition characterized by shocks or burning sensations in the face, seems to be much more common among people with multiple sclerosis (MS) than in the general population, according to a review of published studies. This condition also is more prevalent in women with…
October 9, 2020 News by Steve Bryson, PhD Almost Half of US MS Patients Surveyed Report Using Cannabis for Nerve Pain, Sleep In a nationwide survey of cannabis-based therapy use among Americans with multiple sclerosis (MS), almost half of respondents endorsed such products, primarily for nerve-based pain and sleep disturbances, and the perceived benefits for sleep and pain were highly correlated.Ā The reported…
June 24, 2019 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Blocking Sortilin Protein May Be Potential Treatment for Chronic Nerve Pain, Mouse Study Suggests Inhibiting the function of a protein called sortilin ā an important regulator of nerve damage-induced pain in mice ā may represent a potentially effective strategy for treating chronic pain in humans, including those with multiple sclerosis, a study in mice suggests. The researchers say more work is needed…
December 18, 2017 News by Patricia Silva, PhD University of Huddersfield Team Develops Blood Test for Diagnosing MS University of HuddersfieldĀ researchers have developed a blood test for diagnosingĀ multiple sclerosis that avoids the invasive, painful process of collecting fluid from the brain and spine. The team at the British discussed the test in an article titled āSphingosine and dihydrosphingosine as biomarkers for multiple sclerosis identified by…
December 14, 2017 News by Iqra Mumal, MSc Chronic and Neuropathic Pain in MS Patients Should Be Routinely Evaluated, Study Says Multiple sclerosis patients should be routinely assessed for chronic and, especially, neuropathic pain in order to properly diagnose and treat this condition, which appears to directly affect the degree of a patient's disability, a new study reports. Pain is one of the most disabling clinical symptoms of MS, associated with suffering, distress, and lower quality of life. Many studies have investigated the prevalence of chronic pain in MS patients but with highly varying results: estimates range from 29 percent up to 92 percent. This disparity is likely due to methodological differences between the studies, as well as differences in the studied population. The result is the prevalence of pain in MS is still unclear, and underdiagnoses of pain in this patient population likely. Researchers in Italy conducted a single-center study to determine the prevalence and characteristics of chronic pain, defined as constant pain for more than three months, in a population of MS patients. Pain was evaluated using validated tools, and the results were analyzed in relation to clinical features such as disease duration and disability. In total,Ā 374 MS patients with different disease severities were assessed for pain. Results found an overall prevalence of chronic pain of 52.1,Ā most frequently affecting the lower limbs. Neuropathic pain, which refers to pain resulting from a lesion or disease impacting the sensory nervous system, was the most frequent type of chronic pain, affecting 23.7 percent of the patients analyzed. Pain intensity was also found to be significantly higher in patients with neuropathic pain compared to those with non-neuropathic pain. Researchers measured patients' disability using the Expanded Disability Status Scale. They determined that patients with chronic pain, and especially those with chronic neuropathic pain, had significantly higher EDSS scores (meaning greater disability) than those without such pain. Both these patient groups were also more likely to be on long-term pain medications: 33 percent of MSĀ patients with neuropathic pain, and 24 percent of those with chronic pain. These results indicate that pain is underdiagnosed and undertreated in MS patients, and a factor that may contribute to increased disability. āOur results suggest that clinical disability is higher in MS patients with chronic pain and, in particular, in those with neuropathic pain,ā the researchers concluded. āThe present study supports the routine assessment of neuropathic pain in MS patients.ā
November 16, 2017 News by Ashraf Malhas, PhD Cannabinoid, Dronabinol, Seen as Long-term Treatment Option for Neuropathic Pain in Phase 3 Study Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients being treated with dronabinol, a cannabinoid, do not show signs of drug abuse or dependency, leading researchers to conclude it has potential to be a long-term and safe treatment option forĀ neuropathic pain. The issue of pain management, specificallyĀ central neuropathic pain (CNP), in patients with autoimmune disorders…
September 18, 2017 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News That Caught My Eye: Probiotics, Gut Bacteria, Ocrevus, and a Pain Pill Probiotics Consumption May Improve Certain Disease Parameters in MS Patients, Study Suggests Probiotics (bacteria that help move food through your gut)Ā have been used for years to help treat stomach disorders such as irritable bowel syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, and some types of diarrhea. More recently, researchers have…
February 16, 2017 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Researchers Test Medical Cannabis as Treatment for MS-Linked Neuropathic Pain Canadian researchers are testing mice to see if cannabinoid oil products ā a common medical marijuana treatment ā could help alleviate the neuropathic painĀ thatĀ often afflictsĀ patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). The preclinical study, āIdentifying the molecular mechanisms involved in supressing multiple sclerosis induced neuropathic pain following cannabinoid treatment in…