Active clinical trials for "Sclerosis"

The purpose of this study is to compare the efficacy and safety of andrographolide 140 mg administered twice a day orally versus a placebo as a modifying treatment of the disease in patients with the progressive forms of Multiple Sclerosis (MS). The principal outcome is to determine the efficacy, of andrographolide in retarding the progression of brain atrophy in patients with progressive forms of MS.

The primary objective of the study is to determine whether a Medication Event Monitoring System (MEMS®) cap with a liquid crystal display (LCD) reader (a "smart" cap) along with additional patient counseling intervention (Arm 3) can improve adherence to dimethyl fumarate (DMF) treatment in Multiple Sclerosis (MS) patients as compared to a MEMS cap without an LCD reader (a "standard" cap) and no patient counseling intervention (standard of care, Arm 1) at Month 12. The secondary objectives of this study in this study population are: to determine if data display on a smart MEMS cap with an LCD reader (Arm 2) can improve adherence as compared to a standard MEMS cap without an LCD reader (Arm 1) at Month 12; to determine whether the addition of patient counseling intervention based on MEMS data (Arm 3), or data display from a MEMS cap with an LCD reader (Arm 2) can improve adherence compared to standard MEMS cap without an LCD reader (Arm 1) at Month 6; to assess persistence and compliance at Months 6 and 12 for all arms; to assess the association between adherence and patient- reported outcomes (PROs) for all arms including Multiple Sclerosis Impact Scale (MSIS-29), and the Work Productivity and Activity Impairment Questionnaire (WPAI): MS v2.0.

Pain represents one of the most common symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) that can seriously affect patient health-related quality of life. Central neuropathic pain, the main form of pain in MS patients, represents a significant clinical problem, in consideration of its poorly responsiveness to available therapies. Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) is a non-invasive, well-tolerated procedure with an high and well documented neuromodulation activity at Central Nervous System (CNS) level. First evidences obtained by animal, neurophysiological and clinical studies suggested its potential efficacy in neuropathic pain treatment. In particular spinal DCS (sDCS) has been proven to modulate Nociceptive Withdrawal Reflex (NWR), an objective and sensitive tool to explore pain processing at the Spinal Level and recommended by European Federation of Neurological Society (EFNS) to evaluate the analgesic effect of treatments. In this order of view the investigators' objective is to investigate sDCS efficacy in MS neurophatic pain treatment applying validated clinical scales, neurophysiological acquisitions and specific biological marker dosages.

The aim of this study is the comparison between the effects of supplementation with 25000 IU preformed vitamin A (retinyl palmitate)on retinoic acid receptor and retinoic x receptor expression.

This is a first-in-human trial of spinal derived stem cells transplanted into the spinal cord of patients with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). The goal of the study is to see if the cells and the procedure to transplant them are safe.

Data on fingolimod effects on NK cells are so far conflicting. A longitudinal study on fingolimod treated kidney transplant patients showed that NK cells were not influenced in any of the treatment groups. However, more recent reports indicate an increased frequency of NK cells in peripheral blood and CSF of MS patients treated with fingolimod and a relative reduction of immature CD56bright NK cells in fingolimod-treated MS patients. It has been demonstrated that the expression of NK cell relevant sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P) receptors seems to increase during NK cell maturation. Thus, different NK cell sub-types may response differently to S1P-receptor agonist such as fingolimod. Therefore, the investigators aim to investigate longitudinally (baseline vs. treatment) the effects of fingolimod on NK cell maturation/differentiation.

Multiple sclerosis - MS - affects 1.3m people worldwide, costing the European Union economy €9 billion/year, through both direct and indirect consequences of progressive disability. Despite the usual relapsing-remitting presentation, over 80% of patients develop progressive disability; 40% require a wheelchair within 10 years of diagnosis. At present, there are no treatments that reverse, halt or even slow progressive disability in MS. The investigators recently completed one of the first feasibility/safety trials in the world of reparative bone marrow cell therapy in 6 patients with longstanding MS (www.nature.com/clpt/journal/v87/n6/full/clpt201044a.html). Safety was confirmed, and intensive repeated tests on the patients measuring nerve conduction in various pathways in the brain and in the spinal cord showed statistically significant improvements at 12 months in every patient. While highly preliminary and involving only a very small number of patients, these results at least raise the possibility of a significant (though very partial) underlying repair effect within the damaged nervous system. The investigators believe this urgently requires further testing - both to accelerate benefit for patients, and to begin improving therapeutic efficacy. The investigators therefore propose a programme of translational and clinical stem cell research, aiming (1) to continue translation with a phase two controlled trial of bone marrow cells in patients with longstanding MS; and (2) to explore in parallel the potential mechanisms of action, by studying bone marrow cells from treated patients and control subjects, aiming to establish which of the various relevant bone marrow subpopulations contribute to efficacy, and which particular reparative mechanism(s) are important. The investigators hope these studies will not only confirm the therapeutic benefit of this approach, but also provide the basis for improving the magnitude and impact of this novel and exciting treatment modality.

The investigators are conducting a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) study comparing two MRI contrast agents in people with clinically isolated syndrome and relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (MS). MS is a disease that affects the white matter and gray matter in the brain. MRI is used as a gold standard to visualize the degenerative changes in the brain and spine. The neurologist will usually order an MRI to confirm the diagnosis of MS using conventional imaging methods. These images reveal two main pieces of information regarding (a) the location of the lesions and (b) the status of the lesions. While the location of the lesions directly correlates with the clinical symptoms, the information about the status of the lesions informs the neurologist whether the lesion is new (active) or old (chronic). This ability to differentiate new and old lesions requires the use of a contrast agent. Currently, used agents reveal some lesions but it is unclear if they reveal the full extent of the disease. In new lesions, there may be a leakiness in the blood vessels and if the contrast agent leaks out then the investigators can see this. In healthy controls, the blood brain barrier is usually intact and this leak does not happen. One open question is: "can the extravasation of the contrast agent to the brain precede the major tissue damage that we see in the structural MRI?" Recently, a new FDA approved contrast agent (Gadavist) has been released and has enhanced characteristics in terms of affecting the MR signal resulting in a better contrast in the image and therefore, better diagnosis of the status of the disease. Given its high relaxivity, a small amount of Gadavist may show a better signal enhancement affected tissue for multiple sclerosis patients. The investigators hypothesize that Gadavist will reveal more tissue damage (lesions) than Magnevist and, therefore, may present a better tool for early diagnosis of brain damage. The investigators' goal in this research project is to see if the newer contrast agent is able to detect changes and differentiate healthy from affected tissue in the white matter and gray matter earlier than current contrast agents so that detection can be possible before major damage occurs to the tissue. Each person will be scanned initially with one agent and then between 8 and 30 days later with the other agent. The MR data processing results will be compared to check the efficacy of each contrast agent.

Although ACTHAR gel is approved for the treatment of acute relapses, it is currently not widely used. Thus, we propose to conduct a small open-label proof-of-concept trial to evaluate the response to ACTHAR gel therapy in patients who have failed to make a satisfactory recovery after treatment with high dose IVMP. Documentation of the clinical course as well as any adverse events related to IVMP use will be made. The investigators propose to study the potential benefit of a 14-day course (the dose historically used since the landmark clinical trial of Rose et al1) of subcutaneous ACTHAR gel in 10 patients who have demonstrated inadequate improvement after a course of IVMP, 1000 mg daily, for 5 treatments (over a maximum of 8 days). These would be patients for whom PLEX would be considered as a treatment possibility. The primary outcome measure will be improvement in the targeted neurological deficit, as measured on the appropriate functional system score (FSS) of the EDSS.

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is an autoimmune disease with unknown etiology, which affects especially the gastrointestinal tract, lungs, heart and kidneys. Immunological abnormalities characterized by innate and acquired immune disturbances are associated with the disease development. The present study aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of probiotics in gastrointestinal symptoms, nutritional status and innate and acquired immune responses, by means of the evaluation of IgA, Treg and Th1, Th2, and Th17 T helper subtypes levels in patients with SSc. In addition the levels of CD4+ T helper Th1, Th2 and Th17 subtypes and Treg levels will be compared to a healthy control group.