Plasma Treatment Can Help MS

A doctors’ group says that a plasma treatment can help some cases of multiple sclerosis (MS). The treatment is known as plasma exchange. It’s also called plasmapheresis. It involves removing plasma from the blood and replacing it with plasma from a donor. Plasma exchange requires a hospital stay. Problems can occur, such as infections. Old guidelines from the American Academy of Neurology said it was “promising” as a treatment for MS. The new guidelines say it is “probably effective” if MS symptoms flare up and steroid drugs don’t help. Most people with MS start out having flare-ups. At other times, they have no symptoms. This is called relapsing-remitting MS. Most people end up having progressive MS. This form just gets worse. People have symptoms most or all of the time. Plasma exchange does not help progressive MS, the guidelines say.