Best Practices in Alemtuzumab Administration: Practical Recommendations for Infusion in Patients With Multiple Sclerosis.

With the growing complexity of multiple sclerosis (MS) care, nursing professionals have increasing responsibility in managing clinical disease and treatment. Nursing professionals and other health care providers play important roles in educating patients about disease-modifying therapy options, the course of therapy, and managing potential adverse effects. A panel of nursing and MS experts was convened and used a modified Delphi method to reach consensus on best-practice recommendations for alemtuzumab infusion in MS patients. This valuable clinical resource provides a practical guide for clinicians to optimize patient education and implement strategies for infusion-associated reaction prophylaxis and management when administering alemtuzumab.

Relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis patients' experience with natalizumab: a phenomenological investigation.

This phenomenological investigation was undertaken to gain a better understanding of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients' experience with natalizumab (Tysabri; Biogen Idec Inc, Cambridge, MA) treatment and its impact on their quality of life (QOL). Twenty MS patients who were receiving natalizumab treatment were recruited by the physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, and social worker of the William C. Baird Multiple Sclerosis Center in Buffalo, New York, between March 2009 and November 2009. Patients were invited to participate if they had relapsing-remitting MS, had received at least six treatments of natalizumab, and could articulate their experience. An interviewer obtained informed consent, gathered basic demographic information, and then tape-recorded the participants' accounts of their experience with natalizumab. The audio-recorded interviews were transcribed and de-identified before being submitted to the investigators for analysis. The Atlas.ti qualitative data analysis program (Scolari, Berlin, Germany) was used to manage the data. Patients found natalizumab easy to tolerate and effective; moreover, they described improvement in their QOL. Patients must weigh the benefits of control of their MS against the increased risk of developing progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy with natalizumab treatment. Information from this study will be used to educate professionals involved in MS patient care as well as patients and families considering treatment with natalizumab.

Emerging oral therapies for multiple sclerosis.

Despite notable advances in the understanding of multiple sclerosis (MS) and the availability of several treatment options, there is a need for therapies that are more effective, safe, convenient, and well tolerated. Several new oral MS therapies are being investigated. Because data on these new therapies continue to emerge, nurses will play a pivotal role in educating patients regarding the benefits and risks of potential treatments and in monitoring patients for response, safety, tolerability, and adherence. This article reviews the oral MS therapies recently approved as well as those currently in development or submitted for Food and Drug Administration approval.

Relapsing MS patients' experiences with glatiramer acetate treatment: a phenomenological study.

This study examined the experiences of a group of patients with relapsing multiple sclerosis who received glatiramer acetate for the treatment of their illness. Heideggerian phenomenologic research methods drove the data analysis process with the Atlas Qualitative Data Analysis software program. The sample was a diverse group of 20 men and women 39-64 years of age who had been diagnosed with MS 1-21 years and taking glatiramer acetate 1-7 years. Several participants had been on other treatments; they related their reasons for choosing this treatment and how they manage to persist with taking the daily injections. The themes included choosing glatiramer acetate, self-managing care, injecting, healthy lifestyle, side effects, support, and participant advice to others. Patients with relapsing MS experience a complex process of adjustment when they are diagnosed with the disease and come to the decision to start aggressively treating the illness. They view glatiramer acetate as an integral part of the formula to maintain control over their bodies and manage the disease. Taking the glatiramer acetate injection every day becomes easier as time goes on. They reported that side effects were minimal and manageable.