Reported November 14, 2003
Walk with MS
HOUSTON (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Nearly
300,000 people in the United States have
multiple sclerosis. One of the most common
effects of the condition is that walking
becomes difficult. Now, doctors hope a new
drug will help improve walking and quality of
life.
A simple walk across the room is not so
simple for David Kolodny. “If you can imagine
what it’s like to walk on stilts or something
like that,” he says. “It’s just real awkward
and very unbalancing.”
Kolodny has multiple sclerosis. It started
20 years ago. He ultimately had to give up
working. Now, this former businessman spends
his days sitting at the computer. “I really
don’t go the stores. I don’t go the malls.
Traveling has become kind of a burden.”
This pill -- Fampridine-SR -- may make life
a little easier for people with MS.
“If
it improves walking speed for people who are
using canes or walkers, then they’ll be able
to get around their house better and do more
things in the day,” says neurologist Bill
Lindsey, M.D., of the University of Texas
Health Science Center at Houston.
When the protective covering over the nerve
is damaged, signals can’t get through.
Fampridine bridges the gap and allows nerve
messages to get across.
Dr.
Lindsey says, “We’re hoping for a partial
improvement in areas where the myelin has been
damaged, but the nerve cells are intact.” In a
study on 68 patients, 27 percent reported
improvement in symptoms. Only 2 percent on the
placebo improved.
Since Kolodny is involved in a new study,
he’s still not sure if he’s on the drug, but
even if it doesn’t help him, he’s looking to
the future. He says, “If it can help find
another medication that will help MS patients,
then it’s worth it.”
Fampridine is also being tested for its
effectiveness in treating people with spinal
cord injuries. Doctors expect to have the
results of this study in 2004. Side effects
may include numbness, tingling, headache, and
insomnia.