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gatewaymssociety.org | 1-800-344-4867
The Regional Pediatric MS Center at UCF is a Center of Excellence that was initiated in 2006, along with five other centers, through a grant from the National MS Society. The goal was to provide multidisciplinary clinical services to families affected by MS. Since then, the pediatric MS Network has seen over 1,500 pediatric patients. “Thanks to this multidisciplinary approach to pediatric MS, the pediatric MS Network team has unraveled key features of pediatric MS such as distinct characteristics of the disease on the MRI and spinal fluid of patients younger than 11, when the disease looks different and challenges doctors,” Dr. Waubant said. “Until this groundbreaking work, these atypical characteristics at disease onset resulted in delayed diagnosis and care, and thus, higher
john l. trotter Research program AND ANNUAL MEETING “what kids with ms are teaching us.” saturday, october 6 10 a.m. Hilton st. louis frontenac Please join us as Dr. Emmanuelle Waubant discusses advances in MS research and how studying children with MS could help us understand the disease and develop new treatments.
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chance of disability.” Waubant’s team learned that MRIs of patients under 11 show larger and more poorly defined MS scars compared to adults and that MS scars in young patients often go away within a few months, which is very rare in adults. They also observed that spinal fluid of young patients can show more inflammation than in adults. Younger patients can also have problems thinking and are lethargic with the first MS attack. “Now that these distinct features in younger patients have been identified, and that widespread education is delivered to care providers, accurate diagnosis in children with MS is made easier and early treatment can better prevent disability onset.” n
“We expect by studying children with MS, it will provide many precious pieces of information on risk factors for MS in general, and maybe help develop new treatments or preventative strategies.” - Emmanuelle Waubandt, MD, PhD, FAAN John L. Trotter Keynote Speaker Associate Professor of Neurology, University of California San Francisco