Active clinical trials for "Multiple Sclerosis"

We hypothesize that corticotropin or adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH), administered as Acthar Gel® (MANUFACTURER NAME) is effective in the control of clinical disease activity as a pulse therapy for relapsing-remitting MS when added to standard treatment with beta-interferon. We wish to determine whether ACTH, when administered as clustered monthly intramuscular injections (monthly pulse therapy) as add-on to beta-interferons, may be a safe and effective alternative to monthly pulse therapy with MP. In addition, we hypothesize that pulse therapy with ACTH alters immune function to favor a regulatory, rather than a pro-inflammatory T cell environment.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic-inflammatory autoimmune central nervous system disorder and a leading cause of neurological disability in younger adults in Western countries. Besides "classic" neurological symptoms both depressivity and fatigue are among the most frequent symptoms in MS, affecting up to 90% of patients at onset or during the course of the disease. Neither are the psychological and immunological backgrounds of both well understood, nor are there numerous controlled therapeutic trials which would offer convincing treatment options for fatigue and depressivity in MS. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) has been frequently used to investigate altered hemispheric and inter-hemispheric connectivity in MS. Recently, first therapeutic trials have been performed to address specific MS-related symptoms by TMS. Koch et al. demonstrated an improvement of hand dexterity following repetitive TMS, and Centonze and colleagues showed reduced spasticity following TMS. Recently, a specific coil for the stimulation of deeper brain regions including the deep nuclei was developed, the so-called H-coil. It successfully stimulates deeper (pre-frontal) brain regions. Stimulation with this coil has been shown to be safe and well tolerated in healthy volunteers, and in patients suffering from major depression. The aim of this project is to apply deep TMS with the H-coil to the prefrontal cortex (PFC) of MS patients. The PFC is the region at which stimulation is aimed in previous depression studies as this brain region has been shown to play a relevant role in affective disorders. It is the primary aim of this study, to evaluate the safety and tolerability of deep TMS with the H-coil in MS patients with fatigue or depressivity.

In the course of therapy escalation, the multiple sclerosis (MS) subjects with high activity of disease receive mainly mitoxantrone. The duration of therapy is limited because of a cumulative dose for life (140 mg/m^2 body surface area). In practice lower doses of mitoxantrone (60-120 mg/m^2 body surface area) are being used. The specific reason for this limited total dose are potential cardiotoxic side effects of mitoxantrone. Once this cumulative dose of mitoxantrone is reached and the subject becomes stable, there is the question for subsequent therapy. A possibility at this time, is the so-called "de-escalation", therefore reducing the subject back to immunomodulating basic treatment. The target of this open-label, randomised, multicentric, comparative, parallel-group study was to inquire systematically into the use and course of basic therapy with Rebif 44 mcg thrice weekly (tiw) for a larger number of subjects.

A randomized, double-blind, clinical trial to assess the safety and efficacy of two doses of oral cladribine versus placebo in participants who had a first clinical demyelinating event (clinically isolated syndrome). Participants in either the cladribine or placebo group may also enter treatment periods with open-label interferon-beta or open-label cladribine depending upon the disease status. The primary objective of this study is to evaluate the effect of two dosage regimens of oral cladribine versus placebo on the time to conversion to multiple sclerosis (MS) (from randomization) according to the Poser criteria in participants with first clinical demyelinating event at high risk of converting to MS.

This extension study of was designed to evaluate the long-term safety, tolerability, and efficacy of fingolimod (FTY720) in patients with multiple sclerosis. The Extension study was an extension to the 24-month Core study (CFTY720D2301/NCT00289978).

A clinical study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of solifenacin in patients with bladder symptoms due to spinal cord injury or multiple sclerosis

Guidance issued by the United Kingdom (UK) National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) recommends the use of computerised cognitive behavioural therapy (CCBT) 'Beating the Blues' (BtB) in treatment of depression. However CCBT has not been designed specifically for use by people with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and may not be effective or appropriate for use by people with physical disabilities or cognitive symptoms. There would therefore be value in conducting a trial of the effectiveness of CCBT for depression in people with MS. The aim of this pilot study is to test the feasibility of a randomised control trial (RCT) of CCBT for depression in people with MS. The objective is to undertake a pilot RCT of comparison of CCBT with usual care including 3 month follow up to identify a realistic patient recruitment rate and provide reliable estimates of other parameters needed for designing a definitive RCT including the sample size. Other outcomes to be measured include estimates of the effect on depression and quality of life. Participants will be assessed as experiencing clinical levels of depression and be recruited from two participating MS Centres. The outcomes of the study will be (1) preliminary indication of the impact of CCBT on depression in MS; and, (2) a well researched protocol for a definitive RCT of the effectiveness of CCBT in treating depression in people with MS.

The primary objective of the study was to assess the effect of two doses of teriflunomide, in comparison to placebo, on the frequency of multiple sclerosis (MS) relapses in participants with relapsing MS. Key secondary objective was to assess the effect of the two doses of teriflunomide, in comparison to placebo, on disability progression. Other secondary objectives were: To assess the effect of the two doses of teriflunomide in comparison to placebo on: Fatigue; Health-related quality of life, a measure of the impact of the participant's health on his or her overall well being. To evaluate the safety and tolerability of teriflunomide.

The purpose of this study is to determine whether MBP8298 is effective and safe in the treatment secondary progressive multiple sclerosis. Dirucotide is generic name for MBP8298.

Respiratory difficulty is one of the primary factors leading to death in patients with Parkinson's Disease (PD) and Multiple Sclerosis. Both diseases are progressive degenerating diseases that cause difficulties in breathing, airway protection and swallowing. Patients with PD and MS typically become sedentary and lose endurance, maximal fitness levels and overall pulmonary function. Much of the research focus has been on the motor symptoms of PD and MS yet the pulmonary and swallowing complications are perhaps ultimately the most important disability as the diseases progress. The inability to generate adequate respiratory pressure is responsible for reduced cough magnitudes and cough response times. Cough is critical for the clearance of foreign materials in the airway helping to reduce infiltration of bacteria and subsequent respiratory infection. With reduced cough function an increased risk for pulmonary disease occurs due to a reduced ability to protect the airways. There are a number of promising outcomes from an expiratory strength-training program. By increasing expiratory muscle strength and expiratory pressure generation, effective breathing, clearance of the airway, and improved swallowing can occur. These explicit outcomes are predicted based on our experience with the use of an innovative device-driven, home-based expiratory strength training program focused on the expiratory muscles of respiration. This project focuses on following patients with PD and MS for an initial 5 weeks of strength training and them testing the outcome of a caregiver program for maintaining treatment effects.