Neurology Medical News about multiple sclerosis; interferon beta; earlier treatment

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Shifting the paradigm toward earlier treatment of multiple sclerosis with interferon beta
Clinical Therapeutics, 08/20/09

Comi G – The evidence that axonal damage begins in the early stages of MS, before symptoms are evident, provides a rationale for early intervention with immunomodulatory agents. In 3 pivotal clinical trials, IFN–beta effectively reduced the risk of developing clinically definite MS in CIS patients with a first demyelinating event and positive brain MRI.

Methods

MEDLINE was searched (1990 – the end of 2008) for papers (human clinical trials in adults) published in English concerning the treatment of MS.

Results

Three pivotal randomized controlled trials were identified, 2 involving IFN–beta–1a (30 microg IM once weekly and 22 microg SC once weekly) and 1 involving IFN–beta–1b (250 microg SC qod).
In these trials, treatment with IFN–beta effectively reduced the risk of developing MS by up to 50% in patients with a CIS.
Compared with delayed treatment, early treatment was associated with a reduced risk of disease progression: a 40% reduction in risk for confirmed disability progression at 3 years and a 41% reduction in risk of MS at 3 years.

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