risk factors

Girls given the quadrivalent human papillomavirus (HPV4) vaccination, commercialized as Gardasil, showed no increased risk of developing autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a new Canadian study. The time since vaccination and the number of vaccine doses given also did not correlate with diagnoses of such disorders, supporting…

Age at disease onset, number of early relapses, and the extent of brain damage at baseline can help identify those who are at high risk of progression from relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis into the secondary progressive phase of the disease, a new study shows. The study with that finding, “…

A review of data concerning the multiple sclerosis (MS) medicine Zinbryta (daclizumab) confirmed its association with the risk of developing severe and potentially fatal immune reactions in the brain, liver and other organs, according to the European Medicines Agency’s (EMA)’s Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committee (PRAC). Zinbryta was authorized…

Exposure to epsilon toxin (ETX), which is mainly found in livestock, could be linked to the development of multiple sclerosis (MS), new research suggests. The study, “Evidence of Clostridium perfringens epsilon toxin associated with multiple sclerosis,” appeared in the Multiple Sclerosis Journal. ETX is one of…

Extending the time between standard doses of Tysabri (natalizumab) from four weeks to up to 12 weeks is linked to a significant decrease in the risk of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients infected with what’s known as the JC virus, according to a recent analysis of data from…

A diet rich in fish consumption and supplemented with omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) is linked to a reduction of 45 percent in the risk of developing multiple sclerosis, a study shows. The results confirming previous research will be shared April 26 at the 2018 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of…

Infection with the common Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) may increase the risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS), a new report from the  Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center says. Besides MS, the Epstein-Barr virus also raises the risk for six other disorders: systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, juvenile idiopathic arthritis, inflammatory…

Cigarette smoking increases the relapse rate in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis who are being treated with interferon-beta, a study suggests. The findings suggest that RRMS patients who smoke may have fewer relapses if they quit. An article on the results, “Smoking affects the interferon beta treatment response in multiple sclerosis,” appeared in the journal Neurology. A number of studies have looked at the link between environmental and lifestyle factors and the risk of developing MS. These factors include how much sunlight and vitamin D patients get and whether they have an Epstein-Barr virus infection. Cigarette smoking is a well-documented risk factor in MS, but most of the studies on it have focused on the link between smoking and MS, or the link between smoking and the  disease's progression. “Studies that addressed the relationship between smoking and disease activity in RRMS are rarer,” the researchers wrote. The team decided to investigate whether smoking during interferon-beta treatment would affect relapse rates. Previous research had set the stage for the study by showing a link between smoking and gene mutations that make people more susceptible to developing MS. The mutations were in the HLA and NAT1 genes. The team looked at DNA from 834 RRMS patients in the Danish Multiple Sclerosis Biobank who were treated with interferon-beta. Well-known brand names of the treatment include Rebif, Avonex, and Plegridy. There are also other brand names and biosimilar drugs. Researchers also looked at patients’ medical records two years before they started on interferon-beta. Before making any conclusions on possible links between smoking and patients' relapse rate, the team adjusted for patients’ sex, age at the start of treatment, and number of relapses in the two years before treatment began. Their key conclusion was that smoking increased by more than a quarter the number of relapses in patients on interferon-beta therapy. “Each pack of cigarettes more per day during IFN-β [interferon-beta] treatment increased the number of relapses by 27%,” the team wrote. The researchers found no association among smoking, relapses, and mutations of the HLA or NAT1 genes. “Our results confirm that lifestyle factors are important in MS, suggesting that smoking cessation may be associated with a reduction in disease activity,” they wrote. “Although not formally proving that smoking cessation will decrease disease activity in RRMS, the results should encourage physicians to inform patients with MS about the harmful effect of smoking and increase focus on smoking cessation,” they observed.

People who live in areas with medium to high levels of ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation from sunlight during their childhood and early adolescence, or in the years preceding the age of onset of multiple sclerosis (MS), have a lower risk of developing the disease, according to researchers. The study’s findings…

Eating fish once a week, or one to three times per month along with taking daily fish oil supplements, may help lower the risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS), a preliminary study shows. These findings suggest that the omega-3 fatty acids in fish like salmon, tuna and shrimp may…

The idea that a vitamin D deficiency contributes to the risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS) has been challenged in a recent study that examined subtle differences in a protein involved in vitamin D metabolism in people from different ethnic backgrounds. The study, “Vitamin D-Binding Protein…

Pregnant women with multiple sclerosis (MS) exposed to Tysabri (natalizumab) in the first trimester had higher rates of miscarriage and major birth defects in their babies, than women left untreated or treated with interferon beta, a study shows. Although higher, these rates were similar to those in the general…

Extending the dosing periods of Tysabri (natalizumab) treatment may help reduce the risk of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, or PML, in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients infected with the JC virus, a study suggests. The study, “Natalizumab Extended Interval Dosing Is Associated with a Reduction in Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy…

A molecule triggered by the male hormone testosterone protects male mice from developing multiple sclerosis, Northwestern Medicine researchers report. Their discovery may help explain why MS affects more women than men. It could also lead to targeted therapies to protect women against the disease. The study, “…

Researchers have found a link between variations in two genes that control our 24-hour biological clock and the risk of a person developing multiple sclerosis. The study, “Association of circadian rhythm genes ARNTL/BMAL1 and CLOCK with multiple sclerosis,” was published in the journal PLOS ONE. Scientists know MS…

Thrombin, a blood clotting factor, may be involved in the inflammatory processes of multiple sclerosis patients,  particularly those with relapsing-remitting form of the disease (RRMS), a study found. Higher levels of thrombin may also explain the increased risk of cardiovascular disease linked to MS. By measuring thrombin levels, it may…

Iranian researchers have identified another herpes virus that may increase the risk of a person developing multiple sclerosis. The team identified the human herpesvirus 6, or HHV6, as a potential risk factor for MS through a meta-analysis of several studies. They published their findings, “Relationship of Human…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has updated a safety bulletin about gadolinium-based contrast agents (GBCAs), after studies raised new concerns about them. Doctors often use GBCAs to diagnose multiple sclerosis (MS), monitor disease activity and verify the effectiveness of MS therapies. Gadolinium is a metal ion, or electrically charged molecule, that…

A large U.K. survey assessing the frequency of chickenpox and shingles in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients suggests a link between these diseases and MS, researchers report, suggesting their findings could help in decisions regarding immunosuppressive treatments and varicella-zoster virus vaccinations. Results of the study “Prevalence of a history of…

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) have a lower overall lifetime risk of cancer relative to a general population matched by area, age, sex and habits like tobacco use and alcohol consumption, new research reports, suggesting this lesser risk might be due to the nature of MS itself or to disease…

Multiple sclerosis patients with additional diseases, high cholesterol levels or a history of migraine headaches are more likely to experience relapses than other patients, a Canadian study shows. The report, “Comorbidity increases the risk of relapse in multiple sclerosis,” was published in the journal Neurology. Researchers…

Smoking changes a DNA-based mechanism that influences multiple sclerosis patients’ gene activity, a Swedish study confirms. Another finding was that MS appears to aggravate the harmful effects of smoking. The study dealt with DNA methylation, the process by which the body adds methyl groups to a DNA molecule. Methylation can change…

There is often alarm and confusion about the JC virus, how we get it, and what it means to people with multiple sclerosis. This is my quick primer to help address these questions in a very basic way. What is the JC virus? The first person identified with this…

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) who quit smoking have better health outcomes than those who continue. Therefore, MS-related costs can be reduced by encouraging smokers to quit. Similar results were observed in MS patients with healthy vitamin D levels, Maura Pugliatti, from the University of Ferrara, in Italy, said Friday in a presentation at the…

A strong immune reaction to an Epstein-Barr virus infection and low levels of vitamin D appear to increase the risk of multiple sclerosis (MS) independent of each other, said researchers in a presentation at the 7th Joint ECTRIMS-ACTRIMS Meeting in Paris, France. Previous studies have shown that serum antibody titers…

The types of brain and spinal cord inflammation patches that occur in a precursor condition to multiple sclerosis help determine whether a person develops MS in the next 15 years, a British neurologist reported today. Wallace J. Brownlee of the University College London Institute of Neurology made the observation in…

A higher intake of dietary sodium, most often in the form of salt, does not increase the risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS), Norwegian researchers concluded after analyzing data from more than 175,000 women. Their findings counter earlier evidence from experimental studies in cells and MS mouse models that suggested…

Diet can play an important role in whether children with relapsing multiple sclerosis have a relapse, researchers at the University of California, San Francisco argue. Their study demonstrated that a diet with a lot of fat increases the risk of a youngster having a relapse by 56 percent, with saturated fat tripling the risk. Eating a lot of vegetables, on the other hand, cuts the risk in half, the team said. Since children with MS tend to have relapses more often than adults, the researchers figured they would be a suitable group to study diet's impact on relapse. They recruited 219 children with relapsing-remitting MS or clinically isolated syndrome from 11 centers across the U.S. Clinically isolated syndrome is a condition that can evolve in MS. The research team use a questionnaire known as the Block Kids Food Screener to analyze what the youngsters ate. They tracked the children an average of almost two years, which was plenty of time for relapses to occur. And, in fact, they did occur in 42.5 percent of the group. It turned out that fat had a particularly devastating effect on the youngsters' relapse rate. For every 10 percent increase in energy intake that came from fat, there was a 56 percent increase in the children's risk of having a relapse. Saturated fats were the biggest driver of risk. When researchers look only at these fats, they discovered that the risk more than tripled. Examples of saturated fats include processed meats such as sausages, ham, and burgers, butter, hard cheeses, and whole milk. Vegetables had the opposite effect on risk, the researchers observed. Using a cup equivalent as a standardized measure, they learned that for every additional cup of vegetables the children ate, the risk of a relapse dropped in half. To exclude the possibility that other factors influenced the results, the team included information about age, sex, ethnicity, duration of disease, body mass index, treatment, and D-vitamin levels in their analyses. This did not influence the results. The team also looked at whether other food components, such as sugar, iron, fruit and fiber, would affect the risk of relapse. They did not find any links. Although the risk associations were strong, the researchers cautioned that the study's observational design meant that it was not able to prove that fat causes relapses. But there are several ways that fat could play a role in disease processes, they argued. For instance, high fat intake triggers the release of inflammation-promoting molecules. It also affectsf gut bacteria that are linked to immune processes. Vegetables lower the risk of inflammation and immune problems, the team said. In an accompanying editorial, Dr. Kathryn Fitzgerald of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine said the study had important limitations. Researchers gathered information on the children's diet only in the week before they enrolled in the study. This might not adequately capture more long-term dietary patterns, she said. And fat is not simply fat, she pointed out, arguing that fish oil is believed to help MS patients. Although the California research offers insight, she called for long-term studies to define diet's role in MS.

Women with low levels of vitamin D in their blood are more likely to develop multiple sclerosis (MS) later in life, finds a large-scale study on women in Finland. The study, “25-Hydroxyvitamin D deficiency and risk of MS among women in the Finnish Maternity Cohort,” appeared in the journal…

Having a concussion when you’re 11 to 20 years old could increase your risk of developing multiple sclerosis later, a Swedish study suggests. The collaboration between Örebro University and Karolinska Institutet showed that a concussion in adolescence raised the risk of developing MS by 22 percent. Two or more concussions…