Active clinical trials for "Multiple Sclerosis"

Background: An assessment by paediatric neurologists specializing in demyelinating conditions brought attention to the rapid weight change seen among patients recently diagnosed with, and receiving therapy for, neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) and multiple sclerosis (MS). An overview of the current literature pinpointed weight change as a concern, and identified fatigue and fear as limiting factors for participation in physical activity, with BMI trajectories in this population significantly higher compared to healthy peers. A look at current patient data highlighted extreme NMOSD cases where some patients' weight doubled in two years. There is currently no available research that addresses weight change and management in paediatric MS or NMOSD patients, but there is research to highlight the importance of maintaining health behaviours. The aim of this research is to co-develop a comprehensive lifestyle weight management program for this cohort. Methods: Unpinned by the Medical Research Council guidance for developing complex interventions, this research will involve a fourfold approach. It will build on a previously completed systematic review, and a secondary data analysis of current clinical data regarding weight changes in these populations. Semi-structured interviews will be conducted with patients, parents and clinicians in order to obtain qualitative data regarding the collective perspectives of nutrition, weight change and overall health. A list of factors will be identified and presented in a logic model. A program will then be designed, informed by previously gathered information and will be reviewed by a group of stakeholders via stakeholder meetings. This will output a program design, implementation and evaluation plan which will then be evaluated for feasibility. Recruitment, participation, implementation and adherence to the program will be tested. A patient, public involvement (PPI) approach will be taken, with a PPI panel of experts overseeing and guiding the project for its duration. Results: The results of this research will output a primary version of the lifestyle weight management program for paediatric patients with demyelinating conditions, ready for a feasibility trial.

The key aims of the Swiss Multiple Sclerosis Cohort-Study (SMSC) are To maintain a long-term cohort (>10 years) representative of the MS population currently living in Switzerland. This requires effective measures to limit drop-outs and the continuous recruitment of MS patients and To conduct a systematic follow-up with standardized, high quality collection of clinical and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data, as well as body fluids. The significant heterogeneity within the diagnostic entity and phenotype of multiple sclerosis (MS) is incompletely understood. A central and necessary prerequisite of further advance is a sufficient amount of high quality clinical and paraclinical (imaging, body fluids) patient data. Nested projects will address specific research topics, and facilitate collaboration of the most qualified investigators within the group of SMSC investigators. The nested projects will focus on the: Development and validation of diagnostic and prognostic markers of spontaneous disease evolution and therapeutic response. Exploration of the safety and impact on long-term disability of existing and next generation MS treatments Individualized therapy: A number of highly active but potentially also harmful therapies have lately been established for the treatment of MS. To date, due to the lack of individual prognostic markers patients may not receive aggressive therapy due to safety concerns, or patients with benign disease may receive expensive and potentially harmful treatments without the need for it.

A Phase I Study of NeuroVax™, a Novel Therapeutic TCR Peptide Vaccine for Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis to demonstrate safety & efficacy

To investigate whether genotypic differences can be identified between MS patients developing 'liver injury' (defined as ALT levels five times the upper normal limit and above) compared to those not developing liver injury after exposure to beta-interferon for MS.

This study evaluates the association between sedentary behaviour, physical activity, and the cardiometabolic health of Multiple Sclerosis via several cardiovascular, metabolic and anthropometric parameters.

This study will be underpinned by the new MRC guidelines for developing a complex intervention with a participatory design methodology that uses evidence-based research and behaviour change models alongside COSMIN methodology for validating a measure. Research question: To what extent does gaitQ's smart cueing system improve people with long-term conditions including people with Parkinson's (PwP's) gait? Is it effective in the everyday environment? What factors are associated with good mobility? What is the impact of cueing on healthy people? Aims and objectives: To finalise the product development and evaluation comprising (1) algorithm refinement and (2) monitoring system development. To evaluate the reliability, concurrent validity, and potential for efficacy, as determined by responsiveness in response to the gaitQ product using gait data collected in laboratory environments. To prepare for market entry and NHS adoption: early economic modelling, pricing, marketing strategies, and early adopter partnerships. Design: Participatory design with testing for validity, reliability and responsiveness Participants: This will involve healthy people and people with long-term conditions affecting their movement, including people with Parkinson's [PwP]. Additional patient groups will be investigated, including stroke, and people with hip/knee injuries. Methods The Researchers will collect movement data using the gaitQ system, which monitors and cues, to both collect data and cue in the lab environment and investigate the reliability of the measure, concurrent validity of the metric to gold standard gait capture, the responsiveness of measures to the cueing system and usability for participants and clinical teams. To determine reliability, 60 participants will be invited to repeat testing on a second visit. Researchers will describe participants' conditions using standard questionnaires and their mobility and functioning. This study will be underpinned by the new MRC guidelines for developing a complex intervention with a participatory design methodology that uses evidence-based research and behaviour change models to identify intrinsic and extrinsic factors that contribute to a given outcome in a specific population.

The goal of this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled multicenter study is to investigate whether the combination of food supplementation with Tonalin® and specific probiotics is a safe and effective add-on to first-line disease modifying treatment (DMT, interferon-beta derivatives as well as glatirameracetate and other glatirameroids) in relapsing remitting MS (RRMS). 100 patients will be randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to receive either both food supplements for 48 weeks or to receive placebo in addition to their established first-line disease modifying treatment (DMT). The two randomized groups will be compared concerning the change in volume of T2-weighted hyperintense lesions from baseline to 48 weeks.

For the last decades, many aspects of human life have been altered by digital technology. For health care, this have opened a possibility for patients who have difficulties travelling a long distance to a hospital to meet with their health care providers over different digital platforms. With an increased digital literacy, and an aging population often living in the countryside, far from hospitals or other health care settings, an increasing need for digitalization of meetings between patients and health care personnel is inevitable. However, neuropsychological assessment is one sort of health care not possible to directly transfer into digital form. These evaluations are most often performed with well validated tests, only to be used in a paper-pencil form with a specially trained psychologist during physical meetings. The aim of this project is to investigate whether a newly developed digital neuropsychological test battery can be used to perform remote assessments of cognitive function in patients with neurological injuries and impairments. To this date, there are no such test batteries available in the Swedish language. Mindmore (www.mindmore.com) is a test system developed in Sweden, performing neuropsychological tests on a tablet, but still with the psychologist present in the room. This system is now evolving into offering the possibility for the patient to perform the test in their own home, using their own computer or tablet. The aim of the present research project is to validate this latter system (Mindmore Distance), using the following research questions: Are the tests in Mindmore Distance equivalent to traditional neuropsychological tests in patients with traumatic brain injury, stroke, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's Disease, epilepsy, and brain tumor? Can the results from Mindmore Distance be transferred into neuropsychological profiles that can be used in diagnostics for specific patient groups? How do the patients experience undergoing a neuropsychological evaluation on their own compared to traditional neuropsychological assessment in a physical meeting with a psychologist?

The aim of this work is to elaborate a statistical model to predict the effectiveness of robotic treatment in subjects with neurological diseases. The model will be used to understand which subjects are most responsive to this type of treatment

The primary objective of the study is to estimate the incidence of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) and serious adverse events (SAEs) of other opportunistic infections (OIs) among all participants taking natalizumab. The secondary objectives of the study are to estimate the incidence of SAEs, to estimate the incidence of SAEs among participant subgroups defined by demographic and clinical factors (age, gender, duration of treatment, pregnancy, breastfeeding), to characterize and estimate incidences of malignancies, hypersensitivity reactions and John Cunningham Virus (JCV) positivity among all participants taking natalizumab, and to count and describe pregnancies and breastfeeding among participants previously exposed to natalizumab.