The Neurology Division of the Emirates Medical Association confirmed that the treatment of multiple sclerosis with stem cells is still in the initial stages of clinical trials, contrary to what some health centers from outside the country promote, noting that the UAE was the second country in the world to register a drug for this disease last year. After the United States, Dr. Suhail Abdullah Al-Roken, Consultant Neurosurgeon and Head of the Division, said that all studies that were conducted in the United States and many European countries still have a long time to go, especially since clinical trials usually pass through three stages, starting with a limited number of volunteers, after which the scope of experiments is expanded. To include a number of countries and a larger number of volunteers, all of which are still under research and experiments.
He explained that the Abu Dhabi Stem Cell Center, which is one of the leading centers in the world, conducts clinical trials, and we hope that at the end of the trials results will be announced that support this treatment, but there is still plenty of time to announce this, especially since clinical trials take a long time, sometimes up to ten years, to monitor patients. And the complications that may occur to them and the extent of the efficacy of stem cells in the treatment of multiple sclerosis.
He added: There are no accurate figures about the number of people with multiple sclerosis in the country, but according to international studies, the disease affects between 5 to 7% of every 100,000 people, pointing out that the number of women affected by the disease is estimated to be 5 times that of men.
immune infections
He pointed out that multiple sclerosis is immune infections of unknown cause, causing an imbalance in the functioning of the tissues of the brain and spinal cord, and there are types of multiple sclerosis in children, the most famous of which is recurrent attacks, as usually one to three attacks occur in a patient with multiple sclerosis in a year, which are One of the most important things that research is currently being conducted on is given its serious complications, which may lead to visual impairment, movement and mental perception, pointing out that a recent study published in France last year attributed the cause of infection to a virus called ABB. An attempt is also being made to produce a vaccine that will be given to children, which will contribute to limiting the spread of the virus.
Miscellaneous symptoms
--Dr. Suhail Al-Roken stressed that the symptoms of multiple sclerosis are different and varied according to the affected nerves and the severity of the injury, pointing out that patients with multiple sclerosis lose the ability to walk or speak in difficult cases, and that diagnosing the disease in its early stages is difficult given that symptoms often appear and then disappear. It may disappear for several months, pointing out that the most prominent symptoms of the disease include numbness or lack of sensation and feeling, or weakness of all or some of the limbs, indicating that this weakness or paralysis usually appears on one side of the body or in the lower part of it, with partial loss or Total to look in one eye, while the problem is not in both eyes at the same time, and sometimes it is accompanied by pain in the eye when moving it with double or blurry vision, accompanied by pain and itching in different parts of the body, and the feeling of what looks like an electric shock when moving the head certain movements , loss of coordination between the organs of the body, or loss of balance while walking, with fatigue accompanied by dizziness. While symptoms may appear in most people with multiple sclerosis, especially in its early stages, and then disappear completely or partially, while symptoms of multiple sclerosis often appear. Or it gets worse when the body temperature rises.
diagnosis
Dr. Suhail Al-Roken said that there are no specific tests to diagnose multiple sclerosis, as the diagnosis depends on denying the presence of other diseases that may cause the same symptoms, while the doctor can diagnose the disease based on the results of blood tests, which can help deny the presence of inflammatory diseases or other infections that cause the same symptoms. Symptoms of multiple sclerosis and lumbar puncture, as the doctor or nurse extracts a small sample of cerebrospinal fluid located in the spine and examines it in a laboratory, and the results of this examination can indicate a defect or a specific problem related to multiple sclerosis, such as abnormal levels of white blood cells Or proteins. He explained that this process can also help in denying the presence of viral diseases and other diseases that may cause neurological symptoms similar to those of multiple sclerosis.
leadership
Dr. Suhail Al-Roken affirmed the country’s global leadership in the speed of registration of the latest drugs, pointing out that the UAE was the second country in the world to register a drug for multiple sclerosis last year, after the United States, immediately upon its approval by the Food and Drug Administration, in addition to providing oral medications and injections given each One month, and every six months, in addition to other medications to reduce white blood cells and daily pills, which contributed to the return of many patients to their normal lives.
