Current concepts in multiple sclerosis therapy
- PMID: 30050382
- PMCID: PMC6053095
- DOI: 10.2147/DNND.S109251
Current concepts in multiple sclerosis therapy
Abstract
Over the past 20 years, the available therapies for multiple sclerosis have expanded exponentially. With several more agents likely to be approved for public funding in Australia in the next 12 months on top of the existing multitude of Australian Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme-subsidized therapies, the choice is becoming even more complex. This review summarizes the current state of available therapies and anticipates likely future directions, including an important focus on contemporary symptom management. For each agent, the major trials, side effects, and clinical utility are summarized, with a particular focus on the Australian experience of these therapies. It is hoped this review provides an up-to-date reference of the exciting current state of multiple sclerosis therapy.
Keywords: DMDs; NEDA; PML; demyelination; disease modifying drugs; no evidence of disease activity; progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy.
Conflict of interest statement
Disclosure Over the last 3-years, Dr Sedal has attended many meetings in Melbourne and Sydney to hear Australian and overseas speakers discuss various aspects of MS therapy. These meetings and speakers have been sponsored by all the companies with products in the field. Dr Sedal has been involved in many clinical trials, the most recent being the ocrelizumab trial in primary progressive MS. He received funding from Roche to attend a 1-day meeting of the Advisory board held in Sydney in early 2016. The other authors of this paper have nothing to declare and report no conflicts of interest in this work.
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