The AAN published a new guideline, Practice Guideline: Disease-modifying Therapies for Adults with Multiple Sclerosis, in Neurology® online on April 23, 2018, and in print in the April 24 issue. A press conference on the guideline was held on April 23 at the AAN Annual Meeting for national and international media.
According to the guideline, several disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) are effective in reducing the rate and risk of MS relapses and new or enlarging MRI-detected lesion formation. The question of whether to start a DMT, switch from one DMT to another, or stop a DMT depends on the benefits and risks of the medications and a personalized approach to each patient.
The guideline highlights key findings and provides guidance that clinicians will find helpful:
• Careful risk management and personalization of treatment strategy are important.
• For several DMTs, there is moderate to strong evidence supporting their use; the evidence from comparative efficacy trials is less strong.
• For some DMTs, the evidence is insufficient to determine efficacy but provides information regarding risk of adverse effects.
Read the guideline and access PDF summaries for clinicians and patients and a slide presentation set at AAN.com. For more information, email guidelines@aan.com or call (612) 928-6069.
