Faculty of Medicine
Digestive Aid is a National First
Taking the Team Approach to MS
Gastroparesis is a potentially life-threatening stomach disorder in which the stomach muscles work poorly, or not at all, thus preventing the stomach from emptying properly.
There is an ambitious battle underway in the province—to end MS.
Fortunately the Centre for Digestive Motility at the University of Calgary’s Faculty of Medicine has a new plan in place that is helping to make life much more manageable for these individuals. To this end, the Centre has been instrumental in leading a number of clinical trials in gastroparesis including launching a pilot study to determine the effectiveness of neurostimulation. A relatively new treatment option, neurostimulation involves implanting a small, battery operated electronic device in the abdomen, just under the skin. The device generates small regular pulses of electricity which affect the stomach sensation and function, in order to reduce symptoms such as nausea and vomiting. It is not a cure for gastroparesis but the pilot study is an important development in determining how well it works to improve symptoms and how it affects the quality of life for patients. Since its inception in 2008, the Centre for Digestive Motility has distinguished itself as a national leader in digestive motility and as a consequence of the pilot study offers the only gastric neurostimulation program in Canada.
Our thanks to Jeanne Keith-Ferris and Don Ferris for their continued support of the Centre for Digestive Motility.
In 2009 the Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Society of Canada launched the endMS Research and Training Network, a new nationwide initiative formed to accelerate discoveries in the field of multiple sclerosis in Canada. The initiative is comprised of five operational network centres across the country, one of which is led by Dr. Wee Yong at the Hotchkiss Brain Institute at the University of Calgary’s Faculty of Medicine. Through on-going support from the MS Society, and the Government of Alberta, the endMS Network has made great strides towards raising interest in and standards of MS research and training across the country. In just two years, the Alberta endMS team more than doubled the number of investigators involved in MS research across Alberta and tripled the number of trainees working in laboratories and clinics. Additionally the initiative has fostered collaboration and training between Calgary and Edmonton as well as engaged researchers and trainees new to MS at the University of Lethbridge. With one of the highest rates of MS in Canada, this is welcome news for the thousands of MS patients in Alberta; patients will benefit from novel discoveries, new treatments and improved standards of care sooner than before.
Thank you to the MS Society of Canada for its on-going support of MS research.
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