Developments in Brief : Interferon Shots Cut Rate of MS Attacks

Researchers have cut the rate of multiple sclerosis attacks in half for a group of patients by injecting interferon into their spines, researcher Lawrence Jacobs reported last week.

The report, which confirms an effect shown in previous studies, shows beta interferon works to prevent attacks, Jacobs said

Beta interferon is an anti-viral substance produced by the human body. Jacobs, chief of research at the Dent Neurologic Institute in Buffalo, N.Y., presented results of the study in New York at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology.

Multiple sclerosis afflicts an estimated 250,000 Americans. It results from degeneration of an insulating layer that surrounds nerve cell fibers, blocking transmission of nerve impulses. Symptoms include loss of coordination, weakness, blurred vision and other problems.

The research studied “exacerbating-remitting” multiple sclerosis, in which symptoms appear in attacks that can last three weeks or more before easing. Most multiple sclerosis patients begin with this form, but over time they can slip into progressive disease without remission, Jacobs said.

By the end of the two-year study, the average number of attacks in the interferon group had declined from 1.79 per year to 0.76 per year, Jacobs said. That was significantly greater than a decrease in the placebo group, from 1.98 attacks per year to 1.48 per year, which Jacobs attributed to the psychological “placebo effect.”

The interferon was injected into the spine so it could more easily reach the brain, Jacobs said.