Neurology

The Year in (P)review – MS 2013 – Is the Injectable Era (almost) Over?

January 31, 2013

The year 2013 will likely see the launch of two new oral agents for the treatment of multiple sclerosis – teriflunomide (already available in the U.S. as Aubagio), and BG-12. They will join fingolimod (Gilenya), the first of the oral MS drugs (following the withdrawal of cladribine). Fingolimod is indicated as a first-line (in the U.S.) or second-line (in Canada) treatment for relapsing forms of MS (RRMS).

Teriflunomide and BG-12 are also expected to be accorded first- or second-line status following their review by regulators.

Generation ABCR
Oral vs. injectable
Patient preference and practice
Side effect burden
Next generation
End of an era?
Comment by Dr. Grand’Maison

Pilot study of GSK-3 drug tested in AD

December 26, 2012

A pilot phase IIa study (NCT00948259) has reported promising effects of tideglusib, a novel inhibitor of glycogen synthase-3 (GSK-3), in 30 patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease (Del Ser et al. J Alzheimers Dis 2012; epublished August 30, 2012).

RIS: what are the risk factors for CIS/MS?

December 26, 2012

There has been little information on the natural history of radiologically isolated syndrome (RIS) since it was first described in 2009 (Okuda et al. Neurology 2009;72:800-805).

Fingolimod effective in all subgroups: analysis of phase III data

December 18, 2012

REPORT FROM THE 25^TH CONGRESS OF THE EUROPEAN COMMITTEE FOR TREATMENT AND RESEARCH IN MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS (ECTRIMS) – AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS, OCTOBER 19-22, 2011 –

An analysis of data from the phase III FREEDOMS and TRANSFORMS trials indicates that oral fingolimod produces significant reductions in the rates of relapse and disease progression in subgroups of patients with different levels of disease activity (Havrdova et al. ECTRIMS 2011; abstract P473).

Mortality risk doubled in AD patients

December 5, 2012

The impact of Alzheimer’s disease on all-cause mortality has not been extensively examined but a new nested case-control study from Finland has now looked at this issue (Lonnroos et al. J Alzheimers Dis 2012; epublished August 22, 2012).