'MS' posts

We are just a few weeks shy of the 4th Annual Multiple Sclerosis Art Show. We are excited to share the talented submissions we have received at the Seattle Center Armory on July 6-7 and share how art has helped them.

Today we congratulated artists who collectively submitted more than 100 entries for display in this year’s show. Each person has a unique connection to multiple sclerosis (MS), either as a person who has been diagnosed, a family member or friend.

The annual Art Show is part of the Swedish MS Center's commitment to helping people thrive apart from their disease. It was created and is put on each year by staff, patients and family members with the purpose of spreading awareness about the disease--and life beyond it.

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 ..

The Multiple Sclerosis Center at Swedish is pleased to present the Leo Project, the first outpatient pet therapy program in the Puget Sound region. The Leo Project brings trained dogs and volunteers to the MS Center once per week.

Ocho and her owner Kathy will be coming to the Swedish MS Center every Wednesday from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. beginning this week! They’ll be available for visits in the Hedreen Wellness Studio (just inside the MS Center) for part of their time, and circulating through the lobby and physical therapy gym.

Our goal for the Leo Project is to ...

The Swedish Multiple Sclerosis Center Art Show is accepting entries for its 4th annual exhibit. Art will be displayed July 6-7 at the Seattle Center Armory.
 

Who can enter?

The exhibit features art created by people who have been touched by multiple sclerosis (MS). Anyone with a connection to MS--whether diagnosed, family, caregiver, friend or colleague--is welcome and encouraged to enter. Read full guidelines.

What can I enter?

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: