Saskatchewan's MS follow-up care defended by clinic

Saskatchewan's medical system does offer follow-up care for multiple sclerosis patients who have had so-called liberation therapy, says the head of of the Saskatoon MS Clinic.

Dr. Katherine Knox disputed claims by advocates who accused Saskatchewan's public health-care system of not providing follow-up services to multiple sclerosis patients from the province who have travelled abroad for the controversial treatment.

Knox told CBC News the Saskatoon MS Clinic regularly treats patients who have undergone liberation therapy, also known as cerebrospinal venous insufficiency (CCSVI).

That follow-up medical care is covered by the public health-care system, "no matter what treatment choice or alternative treatment or lifestyle choice that patients make," Knox said.

What is not covered by the public system, Knox added, are extra services that are not medically necessary, such as regular scans.

"That kind of investigation and treatment is currently not being provided in Canada, to my knowledge, paid by taxpayers, or paid by provincial health care systems," she said.

Such scans can be offered by clinics such as the one announced on Saturday by Dr. Ruben Rajakumar, a Saskatoon-based cardiologist and retired University of Saskatchewan professor.

The clinic will offer screening and follow-up care for patients with CCSVI, but those patients will have to pay out of pocket for its services.

CCSVI is a hypothesis put forward by Italian vascular surgeon Dr. Paolo Zamboni. His theory is that narrowed neck veins create a backup of blood that can lead to lesions in the brain and inflammation.

Liberation therapy, which involves the opening of blocked neck veins, is not offered in Canada.

The idea that the condition might be linked to multiple sclerosis, a progressive neurological disease, has divided the medical community. Some patients have travelled around the world to seek out liberation treatment, even though it hasn't been proven to work.

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Saskatchewan's MS follow-up care defended by clinic