Treating Clogged Veins Improves MS, Study Says

Multiple Sclerosis Patients Feel Better After a Controversial Procedure, but Expert Offers Warning

March 29, 2012 (San Francisco) -- Most patients in two new studies said that their multiple sclerosis got better after doctors cleared blockages from their veins.

Researchers reported their results earlier this week at the Society of Interventional Radiology's annual meeting.

"It's a nice experience with a large group of patients," Michael Dake, MD, tells WebMD. He was not part of either study. Dake is a surgery professor at Stanford University in California.

But another expert warns that the studies don't prove the procedure works. Lily Jung Henson, MD, tells WebMD that multiple sclerosis patients should not try the procedure yet. Henson is a neurology professor at the University of Washington. She was not part of the new studies.

MS patients have a wide range of mental and physical symptoms. They may have trouble moving and thinking. Most experts believe the patients' immune cells attack their own nerves. There is no cure. The usual treatment is drugs to weaken these attacks.

Some MS patients also have blockages in veins in their necks or chests. It's still not clear whether the blockages cause symptoms of multiple sclerosis. But the two new studies aimed to find out if MS symptoms could be improved byclearing the blockages.

The procedureis called balloon angioplasty. It is often used for patients who have clogged arteries. Surgeons use ultrasound and other methods to look in the patients' veins.

If they spot a blockage, they thread tiny balloons through the patients' veins. They inflate the balloons to widen the places where the veins are blocked. They then take out the balloons.

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Treating Clogged Veins Improves MS, Study Says