How to Use Drug Therapies to Treat Multiple Sclerosis

A diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis, an autoimmune disease affecting the central nervous system, may be the most frightening event in your life. Within the past decade, the treatment of this disease has improved to include multiple disease-modifying drug therapies. Work with your neurologist to determine what treatment is right for you.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Things You’ll Need:

• Self-injection training by a qualified nurse
• Neurologist

1. Talk to your doctor about the recommended way to treat the type of Multiple Sclerosis you have. Different treatments and combinations of drugs have been identified to treat Relapsing-Remitting MS, Primary Progressive MS, Secondary Progressive MS and Progressive/Relapsing MS.
2. Know that the disease modifying therapies available for the treatment of MS are divided into 3 types. Those containing interferon, which helps to regulate your immune system, are Avonex, Betaseron and Rebif. Copaxone is a glatiramir acetate which invests immune cells with an anti-inflammatory to counteract nerve inflammation in areas of myelin loss. Novantrone is a mitoxantrone which inhibits the immune cells which attack the central nervous system in persons with MS.
3. Understand that there is no drug available to cure MS as this time. All of the drugs currently available alter the course of the disease in some way or seek to treat the symptoms of it.
4. Know that it is only through the regular use of any of the disease modifying therapies that results may be seen. You must do your injections as instructed by your doctor in order to receive any of the benefits that may be provided by the medication.
5. Work with a trained nurse to master the skills necessary to inject any of the disease modifying therapies into your body. Drugs such as Avonex are administered intermuscularly while Copaxone and Rebif are injected subcutaneously or under the skin.
6. Use a calendar to help you keep track of when to do injections and which injection site to use. Particularly with drugs such as Copaxone, nodules may develop in injection sites that are used too frequently in this daily injectable medication.

Tips & Warnings

• Many of the disease modifying therapies available for Multiple Sclerosis today may cause side effects such as severe depression in some patients. If you find that you suffer from symptoms of depression, including suicidal thoughts, contact your doctor immediately for medical assistance in the treatment of these side effects.