On March 30th 2023 Cognito Therapeutics announced neuroimaging results evaluating the effects of the company’s non-invasive neuromodulation medical device, which delivers proprietary gamma frequency light and sound stimulation in participants with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The results were presented at the AD/PD 2023 International Conference on Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Diseases and related neurological disorders, on March 28–April 1, 2023 in Gothenburg, Sweden. Neuroimaging data was prospectively collected in the OVERTURE clinical trial (NCT03556280) along with safety, tolerability, and eff ..read more

In a paper published online on March 14th 2023 in the Journal of Parkinson’s Disease, researchers suggest that a common chemical, TCE, may be a key reason for the dramatic increase in Parkinson’s disease (PD). Lead investigator Ray Dorsey, MD, professor of neurology, University of Rochester, US has called PD “the world’s fastest-growing brain disease,” and said it “may be largely preventable”.[1] TCE has been used in industry, commerce, military, and medicine, including producing refrigerants, cleaning electronics, and degreasing engine parts. It has also been used in dry cleaning, a ..read more

 – This randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was designed to assess the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of NLY01 in subjects with early, untreated PD. – The primary endpoint, change from baseline in the sum of MDS-UPDRS Parts II and III after 36 weeks of NLY01 treatment, compared with placebo, did not reach statistical significance. – Age was identified as a significant factor in response. Statistically significant and dose-related improvements in UPDRS Parts II + III were observed in patients under the age of 60. – NLY01 was safe and well to ..read more

University of Glasgow researchers are part of a new project which is setting out to develop tiny injectable robots capable of predicting and mitigating epileptic seizures. The project, called CROSSBRAIN, is led by Tor Vergata University of Rome in Italy and is funded by the European Innovation Council.  Over the course of the next four years, the CROSSBRAIN collaborators will develop implantable ‘microbots’, about a tenth of a millimetre in size, made from advanced nanomaterials with specially-tailored physical properties.  Once implanted in the brain, they will be controlled by a ..read more

Clinical Education in concussion at Southampton Football Club Emma Jewer, Concussion Service Lead at Hobbs Rehabilitation, recently delivered 2 workshops with practical and theory sessions to the medical teams from the youth, adult and women’s teams.  This has led to requests for more practical training on baseline testing and embedding this into their existing rehab and exercise protocols. Hobbs Rehabilitation are currently working on further clinical education in response to the demand for specialist services for those with persistent concussion symptoms or balance and vestibular i ..read more

Results of UK-wide double-blind sham-controlled clinical trial of the Neupulse device for suppressing tics in Tourette syndrome The trial was run by the University of Nottingham, conducted between 18th March 2022 and 5th of March 2023, sponsored by Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust. The aim was to evaluate the effectiveness of the Neupulse device in reducing the severity and frequency of tics in individuals with Tourette Syndrome. A total of 121 participants took part in the study and went on to receive either active or sham stimulation for 10min a day for 4 weeks. The results of the ..read more

Long suspected by the research community, new study from Tisch MS Research Center of New York, published in Brain, finally establishes that PPMS is pathophysiologically separate from other forms of MS Findings have groundbreaking implications for targeted treatment of PPMS, a disease characterised by worsening neurological function and progressive disability in patients The Tisch MS Research Center of New York has published new research classifying primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS) as pathophysiologically distinct from other forms of MS. Published in the journal Brain, t ..read more

On 22nd February 2023, PTC Therapeutics, Ltd. announced the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has published its Final Guidance recommending Translarna (ataluren) for reimbursement and use across the National Health Service (NHS) in England and Wales. Translarna is the only approved treatment for patients with nonsense mutation Duchenne muscular dystrophy aged 2 years and older who can walk. The final Guidance allows patients to continue treatment on ataluren and does not include a formal stopping rule, which is a criterion used to identify when s ..read more

UCB’s FINTEPLA®▼ (fenfluramine) oral solution has been approved in the European Union (EU) for the treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS) as an add-on therapy to other anti-epileptic medicines for patients two years of age and older.1 The approval by the European Commission (EC) was based on safety and efficacy data from a global, randomised, placebo-controlled Phase 3 clinical trial, in 263 patients with LGS (aged 2-35 years), that demonstrated adjunctive fenfluramine at a dose of 0.7/mg/kg/day provided a significantly greater reduction in the frequency of drop se ..read more

On 25th January 2023, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) announced that eptinezumab (Vyepti) has been approved for use within the NHS in England for the treatment of episodic migraine. Eptinezumab is given by infusion once every 12 weeks. It is one of a number of calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) antibody drugs, which are the first medication specifically designed to prevent migraine. The drug should be available for patients who experience migraine on four or more days a month and who have already failed to respond to at least three other migraine prev ..read more