Emerging Trends That Challenge the Landscape of Care for Multiple Sclerosis: Stephen Krieger, MD

WATCH TIME: 3 minutes

“In MS, there's an emerging category of treatments called BTK inhibitors that are all in phase 3 trials at the same time which is unusual for us. Usually, we've had 1 come out and then a few years later there might be a second molecule in that class. The BTK inhibitors are all happening together and we're going to learn a lot about whether they work, how they work, and whether they change the course of the disease. Also, whether that novel mechanism is something that can be exploited both in MS and other neurologic diseases.”

Recent research studies show B cells and myeloid cells are key players for the development and course of multiple sclerosis (MS), a chronic inflammatory disease of the central nervous system. An advancing treatment in the field of MS are the Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitors which have the potential to provide another alternative therapeutic option that benefits for patients living with the disease.¹ For context, the BTK is important for B cell receptor-mediated B cell activation and for normal B cell development and maturation among patients.

Another advancing development, artificial intelligence (AI), has become increasingly popular for analytic techniques in MS. With the attention AI is getting, providers can expect to see an increase in diagnostic, therapeutic, and rehabilitative technologies and processes that use elements of the technology.² Recently, Stephen Krieger, MD, associate professor of neurology at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, moderated a few sessions on updates in the field of MS at the 2023 International Congress on the Future of Neurology (IFN) Annual Meeting, held September 22-23, in Jersey City, New Jersey.

Krieger sat down in an interview with NeurologyLive® at the meeting to discuss how BTK inhibitors are changing the landscape of MS treatment, and the potential of the ongoing phase 3 trials assessing them. He talked about why the spinal cord is considered an underrated but significant aspect of MS, and how it impacts the understanding of the disease. In addition, he spoke about the ways generative AI can be effectively harnessed in the field of neurology, and the role human oversight should play in AI-generated medical content.

Click here for more coverage on IFN 2023.

REFERENCES
1. Carnero Contentti E, Correale J. Current Perspectives: Evidence to Date on BTK Inhibitors in the Management of Multiple Sclerosis. Drug Des Devel Ther. 2022;16:3473-3490. Published 2022 Oct 6. doi:10.2147/DDDT.S348129
2. Cartwright J, Kipp K, Ng AV. Innovations in Multiple Sclerosis Care: The Impact of Artificial Intelligence via Machine Learning on Clinical Research and Decision-Making. Int J MS Care. 2023;25(5):233-241. doi:10.7224/1537-2073.2022-076