Dear supporters

  • New! Evidence summaries of recent MS research
  • Leading MS centres endorse ‘time matters’ recommendations
  • Stop Multiple Sclerosis – Support for World Brain Day 2021
  • MS Brain Health impact on regular MS monitoring

New! Evidence summaries of recent MS research

Information on brain health in MS is continually evolving. Since the launch of our Brain Health report in 2015, new evidence has emerged on many topics of importance to the MS community. A section of our relaunched website now hosts short summaries of recent evidence to support the MS Brain Health recommendations for timely brain health-focused care. Links to the first two are below – more will follow soon!

Early identification of cognitive deficits related to MS helps healthcare professionals to assess a patient’s prognosis and then offer targeted strategies that can promote cognitive reserve. Our summary of MS and cognition presents the rationale for early cognitive screening, with a brief overview of some approaches to manage cognitive impairment.

Professor Jelena Drulovic from the University of Belgrade, Serbia, explains why the MS prodrome matters. Time matters, therefore intervening at the prodromal stage of MS could have significant implications for preventing progression to clinical MS. The author reviews some of the evidence for a prodrome in MS, the associated symptoms, and the prospects that the window of opportunity to identify and treat MS could occur earlier in the future.

Leading MS centres endorse ‘time matters’ recommendations

We are delighted to announce that the following MS centres from around the globe have formally and publicly endorsed the MS Brain Health ethos of timely and proactive intervention:

  • MS Centre, Royal Melbourne Hospital, Melbourne, Australia
  • Neurology Department, Fundación Santa Fe de Bogotá, Bogotá, Colombia
  • MS Center, Department of Neurology, Barzilai University Medical Center, Ashkelon, Israel
  • Federico II University of Naples, Naples, Italy

We know that many more MS clinics and centres worldwide support our recommendations, but not all are listed on our website! Some, such as Royal Melbourne Hospital, Australia, have long adopted this approach; others are working to introduce the concepts. Whether you are a person with MS or an MS healthcare professional, we encourage you to invite your MS clinic to join the growing list of MS Brain Health clinic endorsers. Please contact us to find out how.

Stop Multiple Sclerosis – Support for World Brain Day 2021

The theme for World Brain Day this year was ‘Stop Multiple Sclerosis’. Championed by the World Federation of Neurology and the MS International Federation, 22 July 2021 was dedicated to raising awareness for MS. Together with these leading organizations and others such as the American Academy of Neurology, MS Brain Health continues to campaign to stop MS by diagnosing earlier, providing better access to life-changing treatments and advocating for improved quality of life for those living with MS and their families. Gavin Giovannoni shares our support for this on our website!

MS Brain Health impact on regular MS monitoring

Our last newsletter reported some top-level findings from our survey into the global impact of the MS Brain Health recommendations and consensus standards. In this and future issues we share some further details. We hope this is an encouragement to us all that our initiative really is making a difference.

Almost half of the 100 survey respondents highlighted the impact of MS Brain Health on improving regular monitoring of people with MS: 45% of the 69 healthcare professionals and 44% of the 25 people with MS who participated agreed.

More detailed information about the survey results can be found in our slide summary on Our impact page, under Downloads.

You can follow us on Twitter @MSBrainHealth and on LinkedIn to keep up with the latest news.

Thank you for your continuing support!

Gavin Giovannoni, MD

Professor of Neurology and Chair of the MS Brain Health Steering Committee

On behalf of the MS Brain Health Steering Committee: Gavin Giovannoni, Peer Baneke, Helmut Butzkueven, Tyler Campbell, Jelena Drulovic, Jodi Haartsen, Jeremy Hobart, Stanca Potra, Mitzi Williams and Tjalf Ziemssen