"Starting medication for multiple sclerosis MS in people who show the beginning signs of the disease is associated with prolonging the time before the disease is definitively diagnosed according to a longterm study published in the August   online issue of Neurology httpneurology.orglookupdoi.WNL. the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology https The study involved people who had a first episode that was suggestive of MS such as numbness vision problems or problems with balance and an MRI that showed signs of possible MS. Up to  percent of people in this situation which is called clinically isolated syndrome will in time be diagnosed with MS. Not much research has been done on how starting treatment this early affects the longterm course of the disease said study author Ludwig Kappos MD of University Hospital Basel in Basel Switzerland and a member of the American Academy of Neurology. Our study adds to the evidence supporting treatment at the earliest sign of the disease and indicates that early treatment has a longlasting effect on disease activity. The study started with  people randomly assigned to receive either early treatment with interferon betab or a placebo. After participants were diagnosed with MS or after two years the participants on the placebo could switch to interferon betab or another drug. After  years researchers reevaluated the  people who were still participating in the study which included  people in the early group and  people in the delayed group. Those who received the early treatment were  percent less likely to be diagnosed with MS than those who received the delayed treatment. People in the early group also had more time before their first relapse of the disease than people in the delayed group with  days compared to  days. The early group also had a lower overall yearly relapse rate of . compared to . for the delayed group which is  percent lower. There was no difference between the two groups in the tests that measure overall disability or in MRI scans measuring the amount of damage caused by the disease. Overall early treatment appears to have a benefit on relapses especially early in the disease but limited effects on other outcome measures including outcomes reported by patients said Brian C. Healy PhD of Brigham and Womens Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and a member of the American Academy of Neurology who wrote an accompanying editorial. Limitations of the study include that participants and researchers learned after the fifthyear tests which participants received the drug and which received the placebo and that after the placebocontrol phase of the study all of the participants received treatment so there was no untreated control group after that point. The study was supported by Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals. To learn more about multiple sclerosis please visit http httppatients.aan.com. The American Academy of Neurology is the worlds largest association of neurologists and neuroscience professionals with  members. The AAN is dedicated to promoting the highest quality patientcentered neurologic care. A neurologist is a doctor with specialized training in diagnosing treating and managing disorders of the brain and nervous system such as Alzheimers disease stroke migraine multiple sclerosis concussion Parkinsons disease and epilepsy."