Prevention

There is no way to prevent multiple sclerosis.

Treatment

There is no cure for multiple sclerosis. There are two types of treatments: those that modify the immune system to suppress the disease, and those that improve the symptoms.

The following treatments improve some of these symptoms of multiple sclerosis:

• Fatigue - Feelings of overwhelming exhaustion are common in people with multiple sclerosis, and can be improved with a variety of medications including pemoline (Cylert), amantadine (Symmetrel), methylphenidate (Ritalin) and certain antidepressants.

• Spasticity - Muscle tightness and spasms can be disabling for multiple sclerosis patients who have spinal cord damage. These symptoms can be improved with medications such as baclofen (Lioresal), diazepam (Valium) and dantrolene (Dantrium).

• Bladder dysfunction - Bladder dysfunction is common in patients with spinal cord damage from multiple sclerosis, but symptoms can be improved with a variety of medications such as oxybutynin (Ditropan) or imipramine (Tofranil).

• Depression - This is a common problem for patients with multiple sclerosis, but this potentially disabling symptom can be improved with a variety of antidepressant medications.

• Neurological symptoms - Anti-seizure medications decrease the risk of repeat seizures, and these medications may reduce some of the uncomfortable neurological symptoms that commonly occur during multiple sclerosis attacks.

Treatments that suppress the disease include:

• Corticosteroid drugs - These are the primary treatment for multiple sclerosis relapses, and they usually are given intravenously (directly into a vein). Corticosteroids appear to shorten the length of relapses and may accelerate recovery in an attack, but their long-term effect on the course of the illness is not known.

• Interferon beta - This is used to treat relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis, and it comes in two different injectable forms: interferon beta-1a (Avonex) and interferon beta-1b (Betaseron). Studies have shown that these medications may lower the rate of multiple sclerosis relapses by as much as 30%. They may also reduce the risk of the disease getting worse and disability though not all studies have confirmed this.

• Glatiramer acetate (Copaxone) - This drug is an alternative treatment for relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis when interferon beta therapy either cannot be used or is no longer effective, or is not tolerated well.

• Other immune-modifying medications - Other medications that can be used to suppress the disease include azathioprine (Imuran), methotrexate (Folex, Methotrexate LPF, Rheumatrex), cyclophosphamide (Cytoxan, Neosar), mitoxantrone (Novantrone) and cladribine (Leustatin).