Phase II trial will assess efficacy and tolerability of NX210c in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) patients 80 patients due to be enrolled with first results expected in early 2026 NX210c drug candidate allows for promising approach to repairing Blood Brain Barrier (BBB) which is impaired in neurodegenerative diseases such as ALS 10 April 2024: Axoltis Pharma, a French biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing therapeutic solutions for neurodegenerative diseases, today announced the authorisation from ANSM, the French agency for the safety of health products, to launch the SE ..read more

Research Highlights: from American Stroke Association International Stroke Conference, February 2024 Hospital beds for stroke patients are typically elevated at the head, however, a flat head position before surgical removal of a blood clot in the brain (thrombectomy) may lead to better outcomes. Results from a multicentre trial in the U.S. found significant improvements in clinical stability and neurological function for patients with 0-degree head positioning compared to patients with head positioning at a 30-degree angle, suggesting that 0-degree positioning may be an appropriate change to ..read more

Theranica’s REN Wearable Becomes the First Ever Non-Pharmacological Migraine Treatment to Receive Commercial Coverage in the USA Feb. 20, 2024: Theranica, a prescribed digital therapeutics company specialising in neuromodulation devices for migraine and other idiopathic pain conditions, announced the inclusion of its Nerivio Remote Electrical Neuromodulation (REN) wearable, for use in the acute and preventive treatment of migraine, under a commercial coverage policy of Highmark Inc (Highmark). This follows the successful completion of its Coverage with Evidence Development (CED) programme with ..read more

Study led by Benedict Michael finds global cognitive deficits A recent study on Preprint server Research Square suggests that brain fog, memory and concentration problems may be due to brain injury caused by the COVID-19 virus. The study found that 351 patients hospitalised with severe COVID-19 had evidence of a long-term brain injury a year after contracting the SARS-CoV-2 virus – this was compared against 2,927 healthy controls. These findings were based on cognitive tests, self-reported symptoms, brain scans, and biomarkers.  More than 60% of COVID-19 survivors display persistent sympt ..read more

Orodispersible film formulation of disease-modifying drug riluzole now available to ALS patients in the UK Emylif offers an alternative for the 80% of patients who experience difficulty swallowing during the course of their disease1 January 24, 2024: In November 2023, Zambon UK launched Emylif, a new formulation of riluzole in an orodispersible film – for the treatment of adults with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).  Emylif offers an alternative to the tablet administration of riluzole which can be difficult for patients to take as their disease progresses and they develop dysphagia ..read more

There has been a long-held belief that acute viral infections are directly responsible for neurological damage, but researchers from McMaster University have now discovered that it is the immune system’s response that is behind it. The research, published on February 5, 2024 in Nature Communications, was led by Elizabeth Balint, a PhD student at McMaster, and Ali Ashkar, a Professor with the Department of Medicine and the Canada Research Chair in Natural Immunity and NK Cell Function. “We were interested in trying to understand why so many viral infections are associated with neurological ..read more

31 January 2024; Biogen has announced that it will discontinue the development and commercialisation of ADUHELM® (aducanumab-avwa) 100 mg/mL injection for intravenous use and will terminate the ENVISION clinical study. This decision is not related to any safety or efficacy concerns. A large portion of the resources released resulting from termination of the ADUHELM programme will be redeployed in Biogen’s AD franchise. We plan to further advance the launch of LEQEMBI, together with Eisai, and continue to bolster innovation with the development of the other assets in our pipeline. When se ..read more

AboLiSh study demonstrates clinical benefit of injection guidance when treating spasticity with abobotulinumtoxinA AboLiSh is the first global study to demonstrate the clinical benefit of using injection guidance techniques to improve patient goal attainment Analyses of study data indicated that patients who are administered treatment with Dysport® (abobotulinumtoxinA) with the use of injection guidance techniques are nearly 3 times more likely overall to achieve their goals The study highlights that almost 1 in 4 clinicians are not using injection guidance when administering abobotulinumtoxi ..read more

FDA approves Takeda’s Immune Globulin Infusion, Hyqvia 16 January, 2024; The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved HYQVIA® [Immune Globulin Infusion 10% (Human) with Recombinant Human Hyaluronidase] for the treatment of chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) as maintenance therapy to prevent the relapse of neuromuscular disability and impairment in adults. HYQVIA first received approval in the U.S. in 2014 for the treatment of primary immunodeficiency (PI) in adults, which has since been expanded to include children 2-16 years old.1 HYQVIA is the only FDA ..read more

Robotic exosuit eliminated gait freezing 5 January, 2024; Gait freezing is one of the most common and debilitating symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, with people suddenly losing the ability to move their feet, often mid-stride, resulting in a series of staccato stutter steps that get shorter until they stop altogether. These episodes are one of the biggest contributors to falls among people living with Parkinson’s disease. Freezing is treated with a range of pharmacological, surgical or behavioural therapies, none of which are particularly effective.  Researchers from the Harvard John ..read more