A Comprehensive Approach to the Treatment of Multiple Sclerosis: Managing the Disease, Its Symptoms, and Quality of Life- Multiple sclerosis (MS) is one of the most common neurological disorders. While some individuals with MS experience little disability, it is the leading cause of non-traumatic disability in young adults, with as many as 60% of patients unable to walk without assistance 20 years after onset. It is imperative to identify and refer patients early in the course of MS, and emerging evidence suggests potential benefits of treatment as early as the first clinical presentation. Disease-modifying immunomodulatory agents are currently the best available treatment strategy, but the management of MS is rapidly evolving. The need for non-injectable therapy for the treatment of MS has been addressed by the recent development and approval of several new oral agents. Physicians treating patients with MS need to make more complex treatment decisions that involve an individualized approach, and understanding clinical trial data of oral agents and their respective mechanisms of action is critical for the optimal management of patients with MS. It is also increasingly important for physicians to establish effective and open communication with their patients with MS and to guide them on psychosocial as well as medical issues, in order to improve adherence, persistence, quality of life, and outcomes.
This online activity focuses on newly approved therapies, symptom management, and optimizing patients’ adherence and persistence to treatment.
Describe how to optimally incorporate newly approved treatments into current therapeutic regimens.
Assess recent therapy advances in symptom management of patients with MS and how these advances can help to improve the quality of life of patients with MS.
Discuss the importance of patient/physician communication in improving adherence, persistence, quality of life, and outcomes in patients with MS.
1.0 Free AMA Pra CAT 1 CME for Physicians
Expires 12/19/15