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Each optic nerve contains approximately one million nerve cells (neurons) that connect the eye to the brain. Inflammation from multiple sclerosis (MS) can affect the optic nerves. Therefore, it is very common for people with MS to have vision problems.

When MS inflammation affects optic nerve neurons, they may lose their protective myelin coating, a process called demyelination. This caused signals through the neurons to slow down, resulting in blurred vision.

Medications may repair myelin, but studies are limited.

4-aminopyridine (4-AP) is a medicine used to treat symptoms of MS caused by demyelination. It stabilizes movement of potassium ions through the surface of demyelinated neurons, making it easier for them to conduct signals.

Historically, 4-AP has only been available through compounding pharmacies, so studies of its use have been ...

Teriflunomide (Aubagio) is a once daily oral disease modifying therapy approved for treating patients with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). One of the limitations of its use is its black box warning for potential fetal harm due to birth defects noted in rats and rabbits. Women who are of childbearing age who are not using reliable birth control are advised to not use teriflunomide.

At the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers annual meeting on May 30, I presented a poster describing 81 pregnancies in female patients and 20 pregnancies in partners of male patients in nine teriflunomide clinical studies. Of these pregnancies, none of the 20 babies born to female patients and 12 live births in partners of male patients had any structural or functional problems. The mean known birth weight and mean gestational age were normal, as was the miscarriage rate.

These findings are consistent with ..

Cognitive dysfunction in multiple sclerosis (MS) is a recognized, but poorly understood phenomenon. Detection of cognitive dysfunction is hampered by the fact that cognitive testing is often long, sometimes costly and at times frustrating for patients. A brief, acceptable screening tool for cognitive dysfunction in MS is lacking.

A new study shows potential progress toward such a tool. Authors of a paper published in the Multiple Sclerosis Journal describe a 10-minute battery of computerized tests that was able to identify with fairly good sensitivity those patients who experienced cognitive impairment. This study, like several other similar efforts, awaits verification before they are more broadly accepted. It is hoped that such tools will come at no or minimal cost to the patients.

Identifying cognitive dysfunction early may be important because, according to a second study published in Neurology, early treatment is more likely to ...

Thousands of people are diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) each year. The Pacific Northwest is home to more than 12,000 people living with the disease. Our area is also making great strides in research to find the cause and new treatments for MS.

The Seattle Channel featured a health special Thursday documenting the lives people affected by the disease and the progress area doctors and scientists are making. In the health special, the Seattle Channel highlights research at the Swedish Multiple Sclerosis Center that is advancing what we know and how docs treat the disease.

Watch the video for the full story, including an interview with Dr. James Bowen, a neurologist specializing in multiple sclerosis at the Swedish Neuroscience Institute, and a look inside the MS Center at Swedish:

Cognitive dysfunction is common in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and can be present from initial diagnosis through late stages of the disease.  The most common issues are problems with:

• Attention

• Information processing (thinking)

• Learning and memory

Recent papers have looked into which rehabilitative strategies would most help these issues.  A new study published in the journal Neurorehabilitation & Neural Repair shows how one specific intervention could improve or restore impaired attention functions in people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) who experienced major attention deficits....

Dr. Packia Raj and I helped with the March of Dimes Walk (March for Babies) on Saturday, May 4th at the Seattle Center.



The March for Babies is the longest-running and most widely recognized walking event in the nation with 2013 marking its 75th anniversary. This fundraiser incorporated thousands of volunteers participating in a fun-filled day of walking to raise money in support of lifesaving research and programs to make sure every baby gets a chance for a healthy start in life... 

The last 20 years have held significant gains for people living with multiple sclerosis (MS). Thanks to new studies and a full pipeline of those to come, our understanding of the disease and promises for future remedies grows rapidly.

Dr. James Bowen, Medical Director and neurologist at the MS Center at Swedish, wrote an article on this progress n Scientific American MIND. "Solving the Mystery of MS" unpacks the history of MS treatments, from breakthrough treatments to rethinking the disease origin, and offers a comprehensive view of what we know now as well as what lays ahead.