MS treatment reduces relapses, but can’t slow progression: study

CTVNews.ca Staff Published Tuesday, Jul. 17, 2012 1:44PM EDT Last Updated Tuesday, Jul. 17, 2012 4:46PM EDT

Many multiple sclerosis patients have complained for years that commonly used MS drugs called beta interferons dont do much to stop the disease from getting worse. Now, new research appears to back them up.

A study from researchers at the University of British Columbia and the UBC Hospital MS Clinic and Brain Research Centre found no strong evidence that the drugs had much of an impact on the long-term progression of the disease.

Beta interferons are the most widely used treatment for relapse-remitting MS, which is the most common form of MS in Canada, affecting about 85 per cent of patients.

In this form of the disease, new symptoms such as partial paralysis, numbness and lack of coordination can appear for or old ones can resurface or worsen. The relapses are followed by periods of weeks or months in which the patient fully or partially recovers.

For the study, the team looked at the health records of 2,656 British Columbia patients between 1985 and 2008. They included those with MS who were treated with beta interferons, as well as untreated MS patients.

The team reports in the Journal of the American Medical Association that beta interferons were not linked to a significant slowdown in disability progression in the patients.

The authors say while they could find little proof that the drugs had much impact on slowing the disabling effects of MS over time, the medications might still hold some benefits for patients.

"We know that this class of drugs is very helpful in reducing relapses, which can be important to patients, study co-author Helen Tremlett said in a statement.

We do not recommend that patients stop taking these medications, but these findings provide evidence, allowing more realistic expectations as to the anticipated benefits associated with drug treatment from the disability perspective."

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MS treatment reduces relapses, but can’t slow progression: study