There is still much that is unknown about autoimmune diseases. Here we invite you to discover the new treatment options for multiple sclerosis.
Multiple sclerosis is a serious, chronic, unpredictable and physically disabling disease. Moreover, its course can vary from relatively mild to severe, with varying degrees. It is therefore very important to study multiple sclerosis and its new treatments.
This disease generates an alteration or lack of regulation of the immune system and affects the central nervous system (CNS). In other words, It triggers cell destruction by the body itself and affects brain connections with the rest of the body.
What is multiple sclerosis?
Etymologically, multiple sclerosis means “multiple hardening or scarring”. This means that there is hardening, inflammation and subsequent destruction of essential parts of the cells. The most affected are the different areas of the brain.
The brain has an area known as white matter. This area is made up of neuronal fibers wrapped in myelin. Neurons are brain cells, and the function of myelin is to allow the transmission of brain information.
So that inflammation of the white matter and destruction of myelin results in a slowing down or an inability to transmit electrochemical messages between the brain, spinal cord and the rest of the body.
Symptoms of multiple sclerosis appear mainly between the ages of 20 and 40. However, diagnosis is late. Because there is no specific test for this. The risk factors are as follows:
- White race
- Women
- Temperate climate
Multiple sclerosis and its new treatments
The multiple sclerosis treatment consists largely of slowing the progression of the disease and managing its symptoms. Concretely, the objectives are as follows:
- Slowing down brain damage
- Slowing down disability
- Reduce the number of households
- Improving brain-body connections
- Relieve pain
- Provide support and psychological help
- Improve the quality of life
Before talking about new treatments, it is necessary to know what are the basic treatments used to improve this debilitating disease that affects a large number of people around the world. It should be noted that they do not make the disease disappear.
Symptomatic treatment
It aims to improve the quality of life. As well as to reduce the symptoms of the disease and disability. There are different symptomatic ways to treat multiple sclerosis. These are:
- Passive rehabilitation performed by professional physiotherapists
- Active rehabilitation made by the person himself
- Injection therapies to improve the condition of affected muscles
- Drug treatmentsuch as corticosteroids that reduce inflammation
- Orthopedic surgery to improve the alignment of tendons, bones and muscles that have lost mobility
- Brain surgery to make changes to inflamed or hardened nerve fibers
Acute treatment
This symptomatic treatment is more complete and more intense. It is used in a relatively short period of time when a crisis occurs and the person is very affected.
New treatment options
Used as a preventative measure, disease modulating therapy is used to prevent the appearance of new lesions or the progression of the disease. This therapy is based on immunosuppressive or immunomodulatory drugs.
It helps control the immune response by preventing inflammation or self-destruction of cells. In other words, it blocks the error that causes the defenses to identify certain parts of the body as foreign.
This therapy therefore aims to control inflammation and the occurrence of flare-ups in the short term. This amounts to slowing down the progression of disability caused by a long-term illness. The drugs used are as follows:
- First options: interferon beta and copaxone
- Second line of treatment: natalizumab and fingolimod
New treatments for multiple sclerosis
Unfortunately, treatments for multiple sclerosis are not always very effective. This lack of effectiveness is mainly due to the late diagnosis of the disease.
It is therefore very important to consult a health professional in the event of symptoms of disability. In order to rule out or not this pathology as soon as possible. This will prevent its progression with these new forms of treatment in the event that it is diagnosed.
All cited sources have been thoroughly reviewed by our team to ensure their quality, reliability, timeliness, and validity. The bibliography in this article has been deemed academically or scientifically reliable and accurate.
- GAEM F. MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS TREATMENTS [Internet]. [cited 2020 May 10]. Available from: https://fundaciongaem.org/tratamiento-la-esclerosis-multiple/
- Cohen M, Maillart E, Tourbah A, De Sèze J, Vukusic S, Brassat D, et al. Switching from natalizumab to fingolimod in multiple sclerosis: A French prospective study. JAMA Neurol. 2014;71(4):436–41.
- Kappos L, Radue EW, Comi G, Montalban X, Butzkueven H, Wiendl H, et al. Switching from natalizumab to fingolimod : A randomized, placebo-controlled study in RRMS. Neurology. 2015 Jul 7;85(1):29–39.
- Jacobs LD, Beck RW, Simon JH, Kinkel RP, Brownscheidle CM, Murray TJ, et al. Intramuscular interferon beta-1a therapy initiated during a first demyelinating event in multiple sclerosis. N Engl J Med. 2000 Sep 28;343(13):898–904.
- McGuigan C, Craner M, Guadagno J, Kapoor R, Mazibrada G, Molyneux P, et al. Stratification and monitoring of natalizumabassociated progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy risk: Recommendations from an expert group. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 2016 Feb 1;87(2):117–25.
- Giovannoni G, Turner B, Gnanapavan S, Offiah C, Schmierer K, Marta M. Is it time to target no evident disease activity (NEDA) in multiple sclerosis? Vol. 4, Multiple Sclerosis and Related Disorders. Elsevier B.V.; 2015. p. 329–33.
- Consensus on the treatment of multiple sclerosis 2016. Spanish Society of Neurology. Vol. 32, Neurology. Spanish Society of Neurology; 2017. p. 113–9.
