Smoking Worsens Multiple Sclerosis
Patients with multiple sclerosis who smoke appear to be at higher risk for the brain lesions linked with the disease and for brain shrinkage, new research suggests.
"Our study is showing that MS is more destructive as seen on MRI in smokers than nonsmokers," said study co-author Dr. Bianca Weinstock-Guttman, director of the Baird MS Center and Pediatric MS Center of Excellence at the State University of New York at Buffalo. The study appears in the Aug. 18 issue of Neurology. Read more.
Extavia Approved for Multiple Sclerosis
Aug. 17 (HealthDay News) -- Extavia (interferon beta-1b) has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat multiple sclerosis, drug maker Novartis said Monday.
The drug was approved for people in whom the autoimmune disease has just relapsed, or for those in whom MS is newly diagnosed, the company said in a news release. Read more.
