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Results for search "Multiple Sclerosis".

29 Jun

New MS Discovery Could Lead to Treatments That Prevent Disease Progression, Study Finds

Scientists say they have identified the 1st genetic variant that increases the severity of multiple sclerosis. They say this discovery could one day lead to new treatments that prevent long-term disability.

09 Jun

More Black Americans Living with MS Than Previously Thought, Study Finds

Researchers find a higher prevalence of MS in Black Americans than previously thought and the neurological disorder appears to be more common in northern parts of the U.S.

Health News Results - 106

Christina Applegate Opens Up About the Agony of Fighting MS

Actress Christina Applegate, who has been battling multiple sclerosis (MS) since 2021, shared her struggles with the debilitating disease on Monday.

“I live kind of in hell. I’m not out a lot, so this is a little difficult, just for my system. But of course, the support is wonderful, and I’m really grateful,” Applegate noted in an interview on

  • Robin Foster HealthDay Reporter
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  • March 12, 2024
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  • MS Drugs Can Be Safely Taken While Breastfeeding

    Certain drugs used to treat multiple sclerosis appear to be safe for babies if taken by breastfeeding moms, a new study finds.

    Breastfed babies whose moms received monoclonal antibody treatments for MS did not develop any more developmental delays than babies not exposed to the drugs through breast milk. The findings will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s upcoming annu...

    Race Matters in MS Progression Among Women

    Young Black and Hispanic women diagnosed with multiple sclerosis are more likely to fare worse than young white women do, a new study shows.

    Specifically, they are more likely to have advanced MS and to face greater challenges during pregnancy, according to findings published Jan. 23 in the journal Neurology.

    “We found that Black and Hispanic women faced socioeconomic dis...

    'Ancient Gene Bank' Gives Clues to Diseases Common to Europeans

    DNA locked in the bones and teeth of more than 5,000 humans who lived in Asia and Europe up to 34,000 years ago are providing vital clues to a myriad of present-day medical conditions.

    The descendants of these ancient peoples are living now in Europe and throughout the world. But their forebearers' genetic legacy lingers, according to researchers who presented their findings in four studi...

    All Pain Is Not the Same When It Comes to MS

    Pain can present itself in many forms for people battling multiple sclerosis, and one type can interfere with exercising, new research shows.

    One class of pain experienced by MS patients is what the authors of the new study call nociceptive, caused by specific damage to tissues. Another form is neuropathic pain, caused by the loss of the protective myelin sheath around nerves that is a ha...

    More Insight Into How a Virus Might Cause MS

    There's information emerging on how the common Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) might be crucial to triggering multiple sclerosis (MS).

    The virus, which also causes "mono" (mononucleosis) and other illnesses, has gained prominence in recent years as a potential cause of MS. Over 95% of people are thought to carry EBV, although for most people it remains dormant.

    Now, a team of Texan researc...

    Mind, Body Symptoms Can Precede MS Diagnosis for Years

    Patients in the earliest stages of multiple sclerosis might develop certain symptoms that offer an early clue to the degenerative nerve disease, researchers report.

    Depression, constipation, urinary tract infections and sexual problems are all more likely in MS patients five years before their official diagnosis, compared with people who never develop MS, researchers found.

    Those co...

    Early Promise for Stem Cell Therapy to Curb MS

    Stem cells injected into the brains of multiple sclerosis patients appear to protect them against further damage from the degenerative disease, a new study shows.

    MS occurs when the body's own immune system attacks and damages the protective sheath around nerve fibers, called myelin. This disrupts messages sent around the brain and spinal cord.

    MS patients who received a fetal stem ...

    Low-fat Diets Battle Fatigue for Folks With MS

    Researchers have found a remedy for the debilitating fatigue faced by many patients with multiple sclerosis (MS): A low-fat diet.

    "The results reinforced what we had seen before," said study leader Dr. Vijayshree Yadav, director of the Multiple Sclerosis Center at Oregon Health & Science University in Portl...

    Blood Test Might Predict Worsening of MS

    One issue hampering the care of people with multiple sclerosis is assessing just how quickly the neurological illness might progress.

    Now, a team at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), say they've spotted at test that could help do just that.

    Blood tests showing elevated levels of Nfl, a "biomarker" indicating nerve damage, seemed to predict with high accuracy a wors...

    Stem Cell Treatment Halts MS for Some Patients

    A new study is strengthening the evidence that stem cell transplants can be highly effective for some people with multiple sclerosis -- sending the disease into remission for years, and sometimes reversing disability.

    Researchers found that of 174 MS patients who underwent stem cell transplants -- with cells from their own blood -- two-thirds had no evidence of "disease activity" over 10 ...

    Emotional Issues Could Be Early Sign of MS

    A newer understanding of multiple sclerosis (MS) suggests that psychiatric conditions like anxiety and depression may emerge long before classic MS symptoms.

    “For a long time, it was thought that MS only really began clinically when a person experienced their first demyelinating event, such as in the form of vision problems,” said senior author

  • Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
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  • September 27, 2023
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  • Gene Test Spots Those Vulnerable to Rare but Severe Side Effect of Drugs for MS, Other Conditions

    A large number of drugs used to treat everything from multiple sclerosis to blood cancers to rheumatoid arthritis may cause a rare but often-fatal condition called progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML).

    But a simple genetic test can determine who has a 10-fold higher risk for developing this condition, which means those patients could discuss safer treatment options with their ...

    Fatigue Can Plague People With MS. Exercise May Help

    Patients with a type of multiple sclerosis (MS) known as relapsing-remitting MS could have less fatigue if they got more active and were in better physical shape, according to new research.

    The study also found that a lower disability rate was also associated with less fatigue.

    “The ...

    The Earlier MS Is Treated, the Better

    Patients who get treatment for multiple sclerosis at the earliest signs of disease may have a lower risk of disability later, new research suggests.

    Among nearly 600 patients, there were lower odds of disability and progression among people diagnosed and treated within six months of symptoms onset, researchers report in their new study, published recently in the journal

  • Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
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  • July 26, 2023
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  • Discovery of MS 'Severity Gene' Could Lead to Better Treatments

    For the first time, scientists have identified a genetic variant that may make some people with multiple sclerosis (MS) vulnerable to faster progression.

    In a study of more than 22,000 people with MS, researchers found that those who carried a particular genetic variant faced a faster decline: They needed to use a walking aid about four years earlier, on average, than people who did not c...

    Pregnancy Seems to Ease MS Symptoms, and Research May Show Why

    Women with multiple sclerosis temporarily get much better when pregnant, and researchers now think they know why.

    Pregnancy causes a downshift in a woman's immune system, and it appears that this unintentionally improves symptoms associated with the autoimmune disorder MS, according to a new study published recently in the

  • Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
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  • June 15, 2023
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  • Black Americans' Risk for MS May Be Higher Than Thought

    For years, multiple sclerosis was seen as a disease that largely affects white people. But a new study finds that it's much more common among Black Americans than previously believed.

    Researchers found that in 2010, an estimated 3 out of every 1,000 Black Americans were living with multiple sclerosis (MS). That was less than the prevalence among white Americans, at 4 out of every 1,000, b...

    Stress Across the Life Span Could Worsen MS

    Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic disease that attacks the central nervous system and leaves patients suffering from a host of symptoms, and now new research finds life stressors can make those symptoms even worse.

    Poverty, abuse and divorce in childhood and adulthood can significantly impact the level of disability someone with MS experiences, according to researchers from Michigan Me...

    Scientists May Understand Link Between Common Virus & Multiple Sclerosis

    It's been known for years that Epstein-Barr virus can trigger multiple sclerosis or drive progression of the degenerative disease, and Swedish researchers think they now understand why.

    Some people have antibodies against the common Epstein-Barr virus that mistakenly attack a protein found in the brain and spinal cord, researchers at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden say.

    Antibodie...

    Used Early, Drug Might Delay MS Symptom Onset

    Growing numbers of people have MRI brain scans to find out what's causing their headaches, see if they have a concussion or for another reason, when a doctor may spot the tell-tale lesions of multiple sclerosis (MS).

    Called radiologically isolated syndrome, this occurs in people who have no MS symptoms but whose scans show abnormalities that are similar to those seen with MS. For doctors,...

    Insomnia, Sleep Apnea Rise in Women With MS

    While thinking declines can be a common symptom of multiple sclerosis in women, new research suggests sleep, or lack of it, could be making matters worse.

    "Sleep disorders have gained substantial recognition for their role in cognitive [thinking] decline, which affects up to 70% of people with multiple sclerosis,” explained study author

  • Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
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  • March 27, 2023
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  • Similar Processes Could Link MS With Heart Disease

    Multiple sclerosis (MS) and atherosclerosis both involve an abnormal hardening of body tissue, and recent research suggests they may be linked.

    MS is a neurodegenerative disease that attacks the brain and spinal cord. Atherosclerosis is hardening of the arteries.

    Studies show connections between the two, according to Ochsner Health System in New Orleans. In 2018, a team of Romanian ...

    Fertility Treatments Pose No Danger to People With MS

    Women with multiple sclerosis who want to undergo fertility treatment can do so without worry, according to a new study.

    Participants who had MS were no more likely to have a flare-up of the disease after receiving fertility treatments than they were before their treatments, researchers found.

    The study also found a link between MS medication and lack of an increase in relapses d...

    Could the Mediterranean Diet Help People With MS?

    A Mediterranean diet may help multiple sclerosis (MS) patients ward off damage to their thinking skills.

    New research finds that a diet rich in veggies, fruit, fish and healthy fat reduced their risk of developing memory loss as well as losing the ability to concentrate, learn new things or make decisions.

    A loss of such key mental skills, or “cognitive impairment,” is a common ...

    Could Bad Sleep in Teen Years Raise Risks for MS?

    Teens who regularly fail to get a good night's sleep may face a higher risk for developing multiple sclerosis (MS) as adults, new research suggests.

    “We found that sleeping too little or experiencing poor sleep quality [as a teen] increased the risk of later developing MS by up to 50%,” said study author

  • Alan Mozes HealthDay Reporter
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  • January 25, 2023
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  • Stem Cell Therapy May Slow MS Better Than Meds: Study

    A new study is adding to evidence that people with multiple sclerosis can benefit from a type of stem cell transplant -- including some patients who are in a more advanced phase of the disease.

    The research is the latest look at a potential alternative treatment for some patients with MS -- using their own blood stem cells to try to reboot their faulty immune systems.

    Studies have f...

    Light Therapy Might Ease MS-Related Fatigue

    Extreme fatigue often tops the list of the most distressing symptoms for millions of people who live with multiple sclerosis (MS).

    And now, a new study suggests that light therapy may help these folks get their lives back.

    MS is an autoimmune disease that occurs when th...

    Obesity Could Speed Disability When MS Strikes

    Obesity is never healthy, and that may be especially true for people who also develop multiple sclerosis.

    Obese people with MS are likely to see the disability linked to the disease rapidly worsen, said German researchers who followed more than 1,000 patients in a new study.

    Weight loss, they suggested, might help slow the progression of the disease.

    "The findings from this s...

    Selma Blair Exits 'Dancing With the Stars,' Citing MS Health Concerns

    Actress Selma Blair made one last waltz through the “Dancing with the Stars" ballroom on Monday night.

    The actress, who has multiple sclerosis, announced during the show that it would be her

    Gut Microbiome Could Play Role in MS

    Scientists have been looking to the microbiome, and its numerous gut bacteria, as an area of research with plenty of potential for finding connections to various diseases.

    Now, scientists have found evidence of significant differences between the gut bacteria of individuals who have

  • By Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
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  • September 26, 2022
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  • Lupus, MS and Other Autoimmune Disorders Raise Heart Risks

    Research has linked heart disease to specific autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and lupus. Now, a huge study shows that autoimmune diseases as a group increase your chances of developing heart ills.

    Autoimmune diseases such as psoriasis, multiple sclerosis, lupus erythematosus and type 1 diabetes occur when the body engages in friendly fire against its own organs, tissues, ...

    New MS Treatment Shows Promise in Trial

    An experimental antibody therapy for multiple sclerosis can cut symptom flare-ups by half, versus a standard treatment, a new clinical trial has found.

    The drug, called ublituximab, beat a standard oral medication for

  • Amy Norton HealthDay Reporter
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  • August 25, 2022
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  • There's More MS in Northern Countries. Now, Researchers Find New Reason Why

    Vitamin D exposure, or lack of it, has long been thought to influence the risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS) because the disease is diagnosed more often in people in northern countries.

    However, new research suggests there might be an additional reas...

    Who Fares Worse After Multiple Sclerosis Strikes?

    For people with multiple sclerosis, certain factors early in their disease may determine their quality of life in the years to come, a new study suggests.

    In medicine, there are ways to objectively measure a disease's course, such as whether a medication is keeping it under control. And then there's health-related

  • Amy Norton HealthDay Reporter
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  • August 11, 2022
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  • Cancer Med Might Be Powerful Treatment for MS

    A drug used "off-label" for multiple sclerosis (MS) is more effective than a standard medication at preventing symptom flare-ups, a new clinical trial has found.

    The drug, called rit...

    Hope for 1st Vaccine Against Virus Driving 'Mono,' Cancers and Maybe MS

    Two experimental vaccines show promise in protecting against infection with the "mono" virus, which also causes cancer and has been implicated as a potential trigger of multiple sclerosis, a new paper reports.

    Tested only in animals so far, the vaccines block two pathways by which the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) ta...

    Does Race Affect the Odds of Developing MS?

    Black Americans are as likely to get multiple sclerosis (MS) as their white counterparts, but rates are much lower among Hispanic and Asian Americans, new research shows.

    The findings refute the long-held belief that MS is rare in Black people, according to the study authors. The findings were published online April 27 in the journal

  • By Robert Preidt HealthDay Reporter
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  • May 2, 2022
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  • In U.S., Price Tag for MS Care Tops $85 Billion

    In 2019 alone, multiple sclerosis (MS) cost Americans an estimated $85.4 billion, a new study finds.

    That amount included over $63 billion in direct medical costs and $22 billion in indirect non-medical costs.

    "The findings of this study help underscore the burden of MS in the U.S. and our hope is our results will inform decision-making regarding MS-related health resources," said s...

    Telemedicine Helped Many MS Patients During Pandemic

    Telemedicine was widely used by Americans with multiple sclerosis (MS) during the pandemic, and many were happy with the results, a new study finds.

    "The findings suggest that telehealth services were well liked during the pandemic. Because many individuals with MS have physical disability that may make travel more difficult, tempo...

    Could the Keto Diet Help People With MS?

    The Keto diet is a low-carb lover's dream, but a new study suggests the popular eating plan may also improve some symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS).

    MS is an autoimmune disease ...

    Epstein-Barr Virus: It Causes Mono and Maybe MS. Is a Vaccine Near?

    The mononucleosis virus, Epstein-Barr, has become a major suspect in the search for what causes multiple sclerosis.

    Now researchers are raising the next logical question -- can we stop both MS and mononucleosis by preventing Epstein-Barr infections, which occur in 95% of adults?

    Epstein-Barr vaccines currently under development by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH...

    Meat-Heavy Diets Might Have Link to MS

    If you eat a lot of meat, you may be at increased risk for multiple sclerosis (MS), a new study suggests.

    MS is an autoimmune disease in which the body attacks the insulation around nerves. It's not clear what triggers the attack, but mounting evidence suggests bact...

    Scientists Discover How the 'Mono' Virus Might Trigger MS

    A one-two punch from science has clearly tagged the mononucleosis virus, Epstein-Barr, as a major cause of multiple sclerosis.

    The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) appears to trigger multiple sclerosis (MS) by tricking the immune systems of some into attacking their body's own nerve cells, a new study indicates.

    "...

    Could the 'Mono' Virus Help Trigger Multiple Sclerosis?

    For years, researchers have suspected that the Epstein-Barr virus, best known for causing mononucleois, might also play a role in triggering multiple sclerosis. Now a new study strengthens the case.

    The study, of more than 10 million U.S. military personnel, found the risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS) shot...

    New MRI Technique Might Help Spot MS Sooner

    Researchers in Austria say a new MRI technique may lead to faster diagnosis and treatment for people with multiple sclerosis.

    The technique can detect biochemical changes in the brains of people with MS early in their disease, according to findings published Jan. 4 in the journal Radiology.

    "MRI o...

    More Time Outdoors May Lower Risk of MS in Youth

    Children at risk for multiple sclerosis (MS) might find some protection from the disease by spending more time in the sun, a small study suggests.

    Although MS is rare in children and young adults, those with relatives who have the condition have increased odds of developing the disease early. Exposure to sunlight may cut their risk in half, researchers say.

    "In families where there'...

    Vibration Therapy May Help Body, Mind in People With MS

    Multiple sclerosis patients might be able to think more clearly and move more easily if they regularly undergo whole-body vibration training, a new pilot study reports.

    A small group of MS patients who experienced vibration training showed improvements in decision making, information processing, attention and memory, according to find...

    Even When Undergoing Treatment, People With MS Gain From COVID Vaccines

    Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients undergoing a treatment that depletes a type of immune cell that fuels MS attacks still have a strong response to mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, a new study finds.

    "The message from this study is clear -- it is worthwhile for patients with MS receiving [anti-CD20] treatment to get a COVID-19 vaccine, which will prevent severe illness," said researcher E. John Wher...

    People With MS Have Worse Survival If Colon Cancer Strikes

    Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients diagnosed with colon cancer may have a greater risk of dying from cancer or other causes in the next six months to year than colon cancer patients without MS, a Canadian study finds.

    "These results warrant further investigation to determine what factors may lead to shorter survival times," said study author Dr. Ruth Ann Marrie, a professor of neurology at ...

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