Latest Conference Coverage

Laura T. Safar, MD: Carefully Addressing Mental Health in MS

The director of MS neuropsychiatry at Brigham and Women’s Hospital spoke of the importance of not oversimplifying the approach to mental health disorders in individuals with MS, and how the collaborative care model can help.­­­

Emily Splichal, DPM: Using Texture for Nerve Stimulation in the Feet

Many patients with neurologic conditions such as multiple sclerosis are faced with gait and stability issues due to their disease, but Splichal and Naboso Technology seek to address these issues via mechanoreceptor stimulation.

Does Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth Play a Role in Restless Leg Syndrome?

All told, every patient with RLS in the study had SIBO present, in comparison to general population rates which range from roughly 6% to greater than 15%.

CBT for Insomnia May Help Reduce Dependence on Prescription Sleep Aids

Use of prescription antidepressants and hypnotics was significantly reduced in patients who underwent digital cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia.

Michael J. Thorpy, MBChB: Challenges of Diagnosing Narcolepsy

The director of the Sleep-Wake Disorders Center at Montefiore Medical Center spoke about the challenges in diagnosing narcolepsy, which often adds to the delay of diagnosis.

Pitolisant Safety Data Shows Positive Signs for Those With Narcolepsy

Investigators noted that, when considered with efficacy findings in narcolepsy, pitolisant has a favorable risk-benefit profile representative of advancement in the treatment of excessive daytime sleepiness and cataplexy in adult patients.

Mitchell Miglis, MD: A Bidirectional Link Between Autonomic Dysfunction, Hypersomnias

The autonomic disorders and sleep medicine specialist at Stanford University spoke about the overlap of autonomic disorders in sleep medicine, an often underrepresented portion of the sleep medicine field.

CPAP Adherence Improves Cognitive Function in Adults With MCI, OSA

The findings suggest that the benefits of CPAP adherence may translate beyond improving obstructive sleep apnea in older adults with mild cognitive impairment.

Lemborexant Successful in Decreasing Insomnia Symptom Severity

The investigational dual-orexin antagonist from Eisai was significantly better at reducing Insomnia Severity Index-measured symptom severity in more than 1000 adults with insomnia in 2 phase 3 studies.

Telemedicine Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia Equals Face-to-Face Interactions

The efficacy of CBT using the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) SleepTM platform has been shown to be similarly efficacious to face-to-face physician encounters in 30 adults with chronic insomnia.

Poor Sleep, Cardiometabolic Health May Increase Risk for Cognitive Impairment

A significant risk for cognitive impairment was observed in adults with short sleep duration and cardiometabolic risk factors, such as hypertension or diabetes.

Amy Sullivan, PysD: Team-Based Approach to MS

The director of Behavioral Medicine at the Mellen Center for MS Treatment and Research at the Cleveland Clinic spoke about the importance of caring for patients with MS by using a team-based approach.

Noah Rosen, MD: Lessons Learned From the Father of Neurology

The program director of neurology at Zucker School of Medicine, Northwell Health, reviewed the contributions of neurologist S. Weir Mitchell, MD, and how today’s neurologists can gain insights for their own practice from Mitchell’s complicated history.

Stroke Patients Who Present Outside of Thrombolysis Treatment Window May Be Targets for Reperfusion Therapy

The assistant clinical investigator, Neuro Vascular Brain Imaging Unit, NINDS, further elaborated on the findings of a retrospective analysis that reported that approximately half of stroke patients who present outside of thrombolysis treatment time windows without large vessel occlusion may benefit from reperfusion therapy.

Bruce Trapp, PhD: Insights Gleaned from Myelocortical Multiple Sclerosis

The chairman of the Department of Neuroscience at the Lerner Research Institute spoke about what the implications of the new subtype of MS could be in the understanding of the disease.

Carrie Hersh, DO, MSc: Assessing Real-World MS Data to Compare DMTs

The MS neurologist at Cleveland Clinic’s Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health discussed how leveraging real-world datasets can help reduce indication bias when comparing treatments for multiple sclerosis.

MS Patients With Positive Prognostic Profiles Less Likely to Initiate Recommended DMTs

Patients with favorable prognostic profiles or relapsing-remitting MS are the least likely to initiate high-efficacy disease-modifying therapies recommended by their physician, with many patients citing access challenges.

Alissa Willis, MD: Identifying Patients With MS at Risk for Suicide

Despite high rates of depression in MS, picking up on signs that an individual may be at risk for suicide can be difficult. The staff neurologist at Cleveland Clinic’s Mellen Center discussed some of the red flags.

Fingolimod Provides Consistent Efficacy in Patients With MS Irrespective of Migraine

Results of a pooled analysis of 3 clinical trials suggest that the magnitude of fingolimod’s treatment effect in MS is not affected by the presence of migraine or headache in patients.

Carrie Hersh, DO, MSc: Shared Decision Making in Multiple Sclerosis

The MS neurologist at Cleveland Clinic’s Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health spoke about the factors that should be taken into account when making treatment decisions in MS, such as tolerability, affordability, and the desire to start family planning.

Teriflunomide Shows Long-Term Efficacy in MS Across Age Groups

Data from 5 clinical trials and their extensions along with 1 real-world study suggest that treatment with teriflunomide can help patients of varying ages maintain low annualized relapse rates and stable EDSS scores.

Interim EVOLVE-MS-1 Data Support Efficacy, Tolerability of Diroximel Fumarate in Relapsing Multiple Sclerosis

Diroximel fumarate may be an effective treatment option in both newly diagnosed and interferon/glatiramer acetate switch patients. Interim results show it significantly reduced disease activity and was well tolerated, with low rates of gastrointestinal adverse effects leading to treatment discontinuation.

Emily Splichal, DPM: Insoles for Improving Balance, Posture, and Gait in MS

The podiatrist and CEO of Naboso Technology spoke about the potential of simple textured insoles to improve gait, posture, and balance in patients with MS experiencing ambulation issues.

Alemtuzumab Maintains Long-Term Efficacy in MS, Shows Superiority to Interferon Beta

Follow-up data extending out to 8 years suggest that both clinical and MRI outcomes are better with alemtuzumab (Lemtrada) than interferon beta-1a in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis.

Amy Sullivan, PsyD: Personalized Approach to Fatigue in Multiple Sclerosis

The Director of Behavioral Medicine at the Mellen Center for MS Treatment and Research at the Cleveland Clinic spoke about how she approaches fatigue in MS from a behavioral standpoint.

Higher-Efficacy DMTs May Have Favorable Effect on Depression in MS

Given that depression is a common symptom in patients with MS and is associated with increased morbidity and mortality, the investigators examined the effects of lower-efficacy DMTs and higher-efficacy DMTs on depression.

MAGNIMS Score Can Predict MS Clinical Activity, Disease Progression

In those with MS treated with subcutaneous interferon beta-1a, Magnetic Resonance Imaging in multiple sclerosis scores may be predictive of the time to new clinical disease activity and disease progression.

Nonadherence to Disease-Modifying Treatment in MS Has Significant Clinical and Economic Effects

In order to better understand the clinical and economic impacts of nonadherence to disease-modifying therapy, the investigators conducted a cost-consequence analysis among patients taking once- or twice-daily DMTs.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy More Effective Than Sleep Education for Insomnia in MS

The investigators sought to compare a 6-week, in-person intervention with CBT for insomnia and a brief education program in patients with MS who reported symptoms of insomnia.

Cladribine Reduces MRI Lesions Across Subgroups in ORACLE-MS Study

The subgroups were defined by baseline characteristics that are known to be potential modifiers of risk to conversion to clinically-definite multiple sclerosis, including age, gender, first classification of demyelinating event, presence of T1 Gd+ lesions, and number of active T2 lesions.