Tell us something we DON'T know. Scientists "Discover" that patients with early MS relapses are more likely to need a cane.

In a classic case of "tell me something I don't know," a recent study in Neurology Magazine "discovered" that MS patients who suffer a relapse within the first five years after diagnosis are 50% more likely to need a cane within that period of time.

Really?

This required a study?

No, seriously.

This is "world class" research.

"Hmm? Doctor Obvious, it appears that people who keep relapsing are having trouble walking." 

"Fascinating,  perhaps we should conduct a formal study, Dr. No-Duh?"

It should be noted that this "bleeding edge" research also revealed that those with early relapses in the course of the illness tend to suffer less mobility issues later in the course of the illness.

Really? (Here we go again.)

Isn't that like saying those who lose their virginity early in life, typically do NOT lose any more of their virginity later on in life.
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Cheers,

Copaxone Drug Maker Says: "Hey! You Can't Steal that Idea; We stole it first!"

  

I use Copaxone.

It's a daily injection of glatiramer acetate, which --at least for me-- has significantly less side effects than the other traditional MS Modifying Disease medications that are based on interferon b1-a.

While I don't know exactly how it works, neither do most neurologists.

But, so far so good in that I haven't had an attack since going on Copaxone about 9 months ago, and that's the longest I've gone without an attack. I'll be the first to admit, however, that is faint praise, as it's equivilant to saying there hasn't been a terroist attack on US soil since 2001, so whatever we're doing must be working --or is it that we haven't had an attack despite what we're doing.

Adding more suspicion to my perspective, is this bit of news that the manufacturer of Copaxone, Teva, is suing a generic drug maker for filing a notice with the FDA suggesting it was going to begin study into the development of a generic version of Copaxone.

On the surface, not so surprising as it's standard operating procedure among companies that make billions of dollars on overpriced drugs that don't actually cure us, but just keep us alive long enough to keep buying their overpriced drugs.  But in the case of Teva, it's even more hypocritical as Teva is a drug company that has built it's business suing other drug companies for the right to produce generic versions of those brand name drugs.

So, the company that spends most of its time suing Big Pharma over the right to produce a generic drug is now suing another generic drug maker who wants to produce a generic version of their own brand name drug.

""ALL ANIMALS ARE EQUAL, BUT SOME ARE MORE EQUAL THAN OTHERS"
- George Orwell, Animal Farm, Ch. 10"

Cheers,

Gimpy Guys: Because there's nothing like a limp, a cane or a wheelchair to make you feel like a man.

On Facebook @ http://tiny.cc/gimpyguys, I've created a new group, Gimpy Guys, specifically for Men with Multiple Sclerosis to share their success --and pratfalls-- of living, working, and surviving MS.

 Why just men?

Notwithstanding the fact that I am one, I also have found that Men with MS have specific issues that are not addressed in the standard support literature -- and no, I'm not talking about erectile dysfunction!

Rather, men, even if they don't think of themselves as "manly" are inherently driven by their testosterone to be a virile "hunter" or "breadwinner."

Yet, even though Women are victims of MS twice as often as Men, anecdotal evidence suggests that the symptoms in men are typically more severe.

And if you want to add insult to injury, earlier this year I read some research that revealed  men pass on the illness more often to their children than women.

"Great, not only are you half a man, but you've doomed your legacy as well!"

However, like most men, I hate to talk about that stuff, so instead I joke about it, and that's why Gimpy Guys felt like the right vehicle for that expression, and unlike my blog, it allows other Gimpy Guys to join the conversation.

So, please join the conversation @  http://tiny.cc/gimpyguys

Cheers,

PS: You don't have to be a man with MS to join GIMPY GUYS, you just have to Love one enough to make fun of him.

Live vs. Killed Virus Vaccinations

A bit more on the issue of whether an MS patient should get a flu shot.

I sent my neurologist a note to get her input on this, and she said:

"Flu shot (killed virus) is ok, both reg and h1n1.  No live vaccines for Ms patients (flu mist)."

Which begs the question: "There are LIVE virus vaccines?"

I had no idea, (as you can see how long it's been since I've had a vaccination); but apparently, live influenza vaccines have emerged in the last few years and have a higher efficacy rate than killed virus vaccines.

And while the live virus vaccines are "modified," it would stand to reason that they may be a bit riskier as the whole mechanism of  vaccination is to give your immune system a "taste" of the virus so it "knows" how to combat it when it faces the real thing. The medical version of "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger."

So how would you know the difference?

Well, here's a rather scholarly comparison from my favorite daily read on the Internet: Microbiology Procedures.

For those of you (myself included) who just want a simple answer, I found one on a website directed at children from the Children's Hospital of Boston.

Bottom line: If they come at you with a needle, fine. If they come at you with a mist to sniff up your nose, run away.

Cheers,

Multiple Sclerosis & H1N1 Vaccination

I never get a flu shot. Hell, I never get sick, except for the whole MS thing, which I attribute to an overactive immune system that kills everything in sight, including me.

So I have not been paying attention to the Swine Flu pandemic, but I did note that the vaccine for that flu is becoming available, and I thought I'd just pass along some information for those with MS and whether or not they should get a Swine Flu shot.  Here's a link to an article by another MS blogger, Travis Gleason: http://www.everydayhealth.com/blog/trevis-life-with-multiple-sclerosis-ms/multiple-sclerosis-and-the-h1n1-swine-flu-vaccine/

And for information about vaccinations in general and those with MS, you can refer to the MS Society's website: http://www.nationalmssociety.org/living-with-multiple-sclerosis/healthy-living/vaccinations/index.aspx

Cheers,

Cats-Schmats! Apprarently Humans Can Repair Nerve Damage On Their Own

A while back I reported on a study that discovered, quite by accident, that cats had the ability to repair the Myelin around their nerves.

In that study, pregnant cats were fed irradiated food and they began to demyelinate. Taken off the food, the Myelin repaired itself, enough so that cats who could not walk were up and about as if nothing had happened.

I found the research fascinating, not so much because of the findings but because I thought it was rather momentous. Heretofore, I had been told that the ability for MS patients to repair damaged myelin was  impossible. But seriously, if cat's could do it, couldn't we figure out it too?

Months later, I came across another group of people who were asking themselves the same question. Not necessarily about cats, and they were asking the question long before I did.

The Myelin Repair Foundation (MRF), founded by Scott Johnson, an MS "victim" since 1976, has been for the last 5 years working to address this very specific issue.

For those of you who may want some background, most MS therapies (there is no cure) treat the progression of the disease. They are known as "disease modifying" drugs. But once the disease has done a number on one's myelin (the tissue that surrounds and protects the nerve), there's not much we've been able to do to fix it.

But over the past five years the MRF has produced some ground-breaking results in getting that done; and they have documented those findings in their latest report.

I recommend reading the report (don't worry, it's only about 15 pages) and also reading more about the MRF.

Cheers,

A Toast to Your Concussion! High Alcohol Patients Less Likely to Die from Brain Injury

Not that I drink in excess, but I like knowing I still can.

So, it was a bit of relief --as I was seriously considering giving up even wine (my last refuge)-- when I saw this blurb in Medical Economics, and quoted from the September issue of the Archives of Surgery.

According to researchers at Cedar Sinai and UCLA Medical Centers, after studying more than 38,000 patients admitted with moderate to severe brain injuries; those who had higher levels of alcohol had higher survival rates than their tea-toddling counterparts.

Not that the study, nor I, suggests if you're going to get into a mind-numbing accident, it's best to be blotto; but if you are, give your bartender an extra tip.

Actually, I hesitate to joke because drunk driving is a national scourge almost as lethal and certainly as irresponsible as is our fascination with hand guns; but I must smirk at the obvious variable that would taint such a study: Aren't the preponderance of brain injuries (not associated with a battlefield) overwhelming alcohol related? Therefore is the subset of non-alcohol related injuries simply too small in comparison to make a relative evaluation?

Researchers gathered after work at the local pub all admitted that further research was required.

Cheers,