Genetic Differences May Play a Role in Successful MS Treatments
It may be a wonder for some people as well as doctors why an MS treatment may work well on one patient and not on another. A recent study has shown that genetic differences may explain why some MS patients respond well to certain treatments while some do not. This study will later on help doctors predict which type of treatments will help different patients.According to an article in the Science Daily website, an international collaboration of researchers which included Dr. Esther Byun of the University of California has identified important genetic differences by comparing the DNA of patients with multiple sclerosis that experienced having reduced symptoms following interferon beta therapy and those who experienced relapses given the same treatment. The team of researchers followed a group of 206 Southern European patients with relapsing-remitting MS for two years after they started interferon beta therapy to treat the disease.
During the said study, the researchers collected DNA samples of each patient in the group. And every three months, the patients were checked how they reacted to the treatment by analyzing their disability levels. The study came up with 99 patients who responded well to the interferon beta treatment while the other 107 patients did not. After dividing the group in two, the researchers used micro arrays to identify certain genetic
The researchers were able to identify the top 35 single nucleotide polymorphisms or SNP’s that were candidates for further analysis. SNP’s are variations or changes that occur in a single base of DNA. The researchers then located these SNP’s in each individual patient to see if the mutations seen in those who responded well to treatment differed from those who did not. After this analysis was complete, an additional 81 patients with MS (44 responders and 35 non-responders) were added into the study. The DNA of responders was again compared to that of the non-responders.
The identification of genetic mutations in the patient’s DNA that affect response to interferon can provide researchers with important new information about how the drug functions in the body. This will help bring scientists one step closer to rational drug design and personalized medicine, the authors of the study note. However, there is a need for additional research to fully predict the treatment outcomes that are based on DNA analysis.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080114162520.htm
Botox Treatments to Ease Bladder Problems in People with MS
There is a new research that demonstrated how Botox injections to the bladder may help relieve bladder problems usually experienced by people suffering form multiple sclerosis or MS. This research, which was funded by the MS Society of UK, was made at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery in the UK.
In the said research study, 43 patients suffering from multiple sclerosis and who were also experiencing bladder problems were treated with botulinum neurotoxin type A bladder muscle injections. The said injections helped reduce involuntary contractions in the bladder and so helped in reducing the urgency and the frequency of urination in the test subjects.
Incontinence and other bladder problems are common for people who are suffering from multiple sclerosis. Usually the storage and the emptying processes involved in the bladder is disrupted and therefore is a cause for worry and distress for many multiple sclerosis sufferers. Not being able to “hold on” or urgency in urination is one of the troubling circumstances that MS sufferers find themselves in.
Botox injections in the bladder, as shown by the research has demonstrated how such a treatment may be able to provide significant improvements to incontinence as well as urgency problems that most MS sufferers may experience. The effect of the treatment was seen to last for 10 months and repeat treatments showed similar results.
According to Professor Clare Fowler, a consultant in Uro-Neurology at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, the study was a part of a research investigation and the said treatment is not yet widely available. The said treatment has not yet been licensed and it may take a few more years pending an ongoing study to further understand and verify treatment results.
The said study has been valuable in trying to search for ways as to why such treatments work so well. It also provides a possible treatment making use of a minimally invasive injection technique to people with MS who also suffer from bladder problems as an eventual result of the said disease. Time will tell if this new treatment will be able to become a standard care for people with MS who might need it. An improved bladder control may be able to help MS sufferers with bladder problems lead an improved quality of life.
Source: http://www.msrc.co.uk/index.cfm?fuseaction=show&pageid=2338&CFID=5181811&CFTOKEN=57428268
Multiple Sclerosis Treatment
The illness that is called MS or Multiple Sclerosis is a chronic and progressive illness which targets the different nerves in the brain, spinal cord as well as other parts of the central nervous system.
It is an autoimmune disease which translates to the body’s immune system targeting itself. It attacks cells, organs as well as tissues which are perfectly fine. If you have multiple sclerosis, you are not alone as it affects over 400,000 people in the United States alone and may possibly affect 2.5 million people worldwide. One trivia is that it affects 2-3 as many women as men.
Interferon beta-1B (Betaseron)
There are several treatment options for those who are suffering from Multiple Sclerosis (MS). One of which is the administering of the drug “Interferon beta-1b” or Betaseron. This is injected under the skin every other day. Interferons are substances which are manufactured by the body to help maintain the immune system.
In this particular case, the diminishing activity of some specific white blood cells is desired in order to tone down the cells responsible for the disease. What Betaseron does is it decreases the rate of relapse as well as slows down the development of new lesions on the patient. It also delays the progression of disability.
Corticosteroids (methylprednisolone, prednisone, dexamethasone)
For primary progressive as well as progressive/relapsing Multiple Sclerosis Treatment, there is no treatment that is currently approved however there are disease modifying therapies which may possibly reduce the progression of MS. These will be beneficial for the patient who is seeking available medical relief.
There are short-term treatments with corticosteroids such as prednisone, methylprednisolone, dexamethasone and some others. These are able to aid in the periods of acute relapse and the mechanism by which corticosteroids work is by decreasing the body’s defense system reaction to the myelin contained in a person’s central nervous system. This will eventually hasten the recovery from acute attacks and will essentially prevent further damage to the blood-brain barrier.
The various treatments for MS significantly focus on decreasing the rate as well as the severity of relapse while reducing the number of MS lesions. It delays the progression of the disease while being able to provide symptomatic relief for the MS patient. These are just some of the drugs which have been developed. Further research into the illness will probably reveal new and better drugs for the relief of all sufferers of MS.
