Prozac may benefit patients with multiple sclerosis

[UndertheOcean]

Amsterdam - Prozac can delay the symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a study by Dutch researchers from the Royal University of Groningen published in the British Medical Journal, Dutch media reported recently. The researchers tested the medicine against depression in a so- called double-blind study on a group of patients suffering from MS.

Half of the group was given Prozac, the other half was not.

Every four weeks, the group underwent a brain scan to see if any new inflammations - a sign of progressing MS - were found.

After eight weeks, the patients administered a placebo had more inflammations than those given Prozac.

At the end of the study, after 24 weeks, two-thirds of the people who had been administered Prozac did not have any new inflammations, compared with 25 per cent of the people given a placebo.

More than 1 million people worldwide suffer from MS, a disease of the central nervous system.

The disease is progressive, which means the patient's condition decreases irrevocably, step by step.

The symptoms the patient suffers from depend on which parts of the central nervous system have been affected.

http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/204705,prozac-may-benefit-patients-with-multiple-sclerosis.html

[mzmolly]

1. Fascinating.

Thank you for sharing this.

[Redstone]

2. What? God damn! Thank you, thank you for posting this. I'm going to look into it.

Grasping at straws though it may seem, ANYTHING that shows promise is worth investigating.

Thanks again for posting, and for the link.

Redstone

[MADem]

4. More here: Relapsing remitting form, specifically

A new study published in the Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery and Psychiatry finds that Prozac, a commonly prescribed antidepressant, may be an agent in slowing down the disease process of the relapsing remitting form of multiple sclerosis (MS).
...Of the 40 initial patients, 19 participants in each group finished the study. The main finding was that the patients who were treated with Prozac had fewer new areas of inflammation than those treated with placebo. The researchers were able to detect the effects just after eight weeks - the same amount of time that it takes for selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) drugs such as Prozac to begin relieving depression.

Specifically, the group given placebo had an average of over five new areas affected with inflammation compared to just less than two areas in the Prozac group. Twenty-five percent of scans from Prozac-treated patients and forty percent of placebo-treated patients depicted new areas of inflammation. Almost two out of three patients in the Prozac group had no new inflammation areas during the last 16 weeks of treatment, whereas only about 25% of patients in the placebo group had no new areas.

Although this was a small-scale study and a larger sample size is required to increase the robustness of results, the authors conclude that, "Results of our exploratory trial are sufficiently encouraging to justify further studies with fluoxetine in patients with MS. Higher doses of fluoxetine and combination treatment with immunomodulatory drugs should be considered." http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/106150.php


They've started a clinical trial in London: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/103789.php

I didn't find one in the US, but perhaps they're starting one up, or it might be possible to affiliate long-distance with the one in the UK.

[Redstone]

7. Gaw damn. Relapsing/remitting is the type I have. And as you probably know, that's

the type to have if you're gonna have a type.

Thank you for adding that information. I'll check it out tomorrow.

Redstone

[MADem]

9. Good luck. I hope your doc cooperates!

I say, if you can get your doctor to either affiliate with that UK study, find one in the US doing the same thing (I did a fast look and didn't come up with one, but I didn't dig real deep), or strike out on his own using the NE and UK protocol, it's something worth exploring.

There's minimal downside to adding the Prozac if you tolerate it well--hell, it could offer an unanticipated upside--I know some people who swear by the stuff.

[fudge stripe cookays]

3. Another drug I'll recommend...

for those who may not know about it....

My new doctor up here is much more into experimental treatment than my doc in Dallas, and put me on something called "Provigil." It is normally used to treat narcolepsy, but he used it to treat my exhaustion and weakness.

I have a new lease on life! This stuff is amazing. Not cheap of course, but if you have a decent insurance plan, get some. I don't take one every day. I seem to see residual effects. I only take one on the days where I need to do lots of errands, or lots of housework, etc. I'm like the Energizer Bunny for hours afterward.

fsc

[Mojorabbit]

6. My previous doc

gave me provigil eight years ago and it did nothing for me. My neuro is trying me out on ritalin and it makes me feel creepy.
I can't take prozac which is a bummer.

[lizerdbits]

13. The only thing provigil did for me

was wake me up in the middle of the night with my arms and legs jerking around. I was on it for sleep problems (not narcolepsy) so it made my sleep worse. The doc was surprised since even though it's a stimulant I was taking in the morning it should have been out of my system by then.

[bananas]

5. The Prozac Story: Don't Swallow It (Yet)

http://www.healthcentral.com/multiple-sclerosis/c/4852/26697/swallow/

The Prozac Story: Don't Swallow It (Yet)
by Craig Stoltz
Thursday, May 01, 2008

The recent report that Prozac may slow the development of brain lesions is the sort of news that maybe shouldn't be reported at all. It's so preliminary that it's of value almost exclusively to researchers. It appears to invite people with MS to consider taking Prozac to slow the disease. It shouldn't.

Three things you need to know:

1. The Dutch study was very small: 19 people with MS taking Prozac, 19 taking a placebo. Researchers used MRIs every four weeks to monitor development of brain inflammation. At eight weeks fewer new lesions appeared in patients taking Prozac; the difference was sustained for 24 weeks.

2. There was no difference in symptoms or exacerbations related to the two treatments during the tests. But side effects did show themselves: People taking Prozac had more drowsiness and nausea than those who took the placebo.

3. The bottom line here is that there is enough evidence to justify moving ahead with further studies of Prozac (and similar SSRI antidepressants) and MS. The group studied was too small, and the study itself looking at questions too narrow, to justify broader conclusions.

<snip>

[MADem]

10. They've ginned up a UK trial as well. I've been looking around for a US one, no success, yet. NT

[China_cat]

12. I'd rather have my son try the prozac

than some of the crap like colon cleanses that are being pushed on him.

[bananas]

14. Prozac has been around for 20 years

If it had a dramatic effect on MS, it would've gotten a lot more attention by now.

[China_cat]

15. How? If it's only recently been tried off-label

for MS. I imagine that someone just noticed that MS sufferers who were on Prozac for depression were doing better than other who weren't and decided to find out if that was what made the difference.

I imagine that the numbers of people taking it for depression alone are much higher than those who also have MS. Who would have thought, initially that there might be help for the latter?

The same way, who would have thought that an asthma medication (Advair) could also cause joint and muscle pain and muscle cramps? But it does and it took a lot of usage of it for those effects to make themselves known in the numbers of people who have them. (Which are less than 10% of the users.)

I'm just sick of the people pushing quack remedies and god on my son. He needs medical help, not false hope and snake oil.

[Clear Blue Sky]

8. Prozac alters brain chemistry.

It makes sense that it might help. Certainly worth trying in a disease like MS that has limited treatment options.

[fed-up]

11. my sis has had relapsing-remitting for over 20 years-since moving out of country only attack was

after she was involved in a car crash
she also had slowly gone off all her meds over a period of a year (and yes, they had her on at least nine)
her diet has also improved and is almost all home grown or local FRESH food, very little beef if any

STRESS is a huge factor in triggering attacks

My guess would be that the Prozac calms/sedates people and helps aleviate stress




I am not suggesting people move out of the country to reduce attacks, but I am suggesting that working on stress levels may help if one does not want to go the chemical route


edited to add that she started with relapsing-remitting which turned into chronic-progressive about 10 or so years ago