Multiple Sclerosis Treatment

Although there is no cure for MS, multiple sclerosis treatment aims to improve each patient's quality of life by preventing attacks, slowing disease progression, minimizing symptom severity and duration and treating symptoms.

For example, several drugs are used to prevent or minimize symptoms. These drugs are generally immune suppressing or modulating drugs, which inhibit or modify the way the immune system works, hopefully preventing or reducing the severity of the autoimmune attacks on the central nervous system. Some of these drugs are used chronically to prevent exacerbations and delay progression while others are used acutely (such as steroid drugs like prednisone) during attacks to lessen symptom severity and duration.

Additionally, some treatment is simply symptomatic, meaning that it aims at making patients more comfortable with their symptoms. This includes pain medications for patients with pain. Many patients complain of muscle spasms and there are various anti-spasmodics which can help with this. Some patients may experience urinary incontinence and there are some drugs which can improve bladder control.

Finally, there are a number of procedures which are sometimes employed. Plasmapheresis is a procedure which attempts to minimize the antibodies in the blood, hopefully getting rid of some of the antibodies which may be involved in the autoimmune disease. Although it is controversial it may be recommended in some cases. Other types of multiple sclerosis treatment are aimed at a specific symptom. For example, in patients with severe tremor a deep brain stimulator procedure may be recommended to help control the tremors.