Reducing Disease Activity in Multiple Sclerosis: Keeping Up with Recent Advances

Format: Webcourse

Credit(s): 1.00 (60 min)

Release Date: Jun 03, 2020

Expiration Date: Jun 03, 2021

Credit Type(s):

CME / AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™
MOC / ABIM MOC Part 2 Credit
MIPS Improvement Activity Under MACRA

PROGRAM OVERVIEW

Early diagnosis is key to improving outcomes in patients with MS. Initiating disease-modifying therapy (DMT) as soon as possible is essential to control disease symptoms, mitigate progression and prevent relapse, and minimize disease-related disability. An improved understanding of MS pathophysiology has revolutionized the DMT landscape, offering patients more than 15 approved therapies. However, difficulties remain in ensuring an accurate diagnosis and individualizing therapy for each patient, which may preclude patients from reaping the optimal benefits of therapy.

This activity, Reducing Disease Activity in Multiple Sclerosis: Keeping Up with Recent Advances, will provide clinicians with a concise, but comprehensive, review of approved DMTs for MS, illustrations of appropriate assessments, determinations of MS subtypes, identifications of prognostic factors, and determinations of patients’ risks for progression. It will also provide communication techniques and patient-engagement strategies that enable clinician/patient collaborations, improve treatment compliance, and enhance patient quality of life.

AGENDA

Welcome and Introduction
Current Evidence in MS Diagnosis
Integrating Evidence-based Treatment Goals into MS Management
Assessing Current and Emerging MS Therapies
Concluding Remarks

TARGET AUDIENCE

This activity is intended for neurologists, MS specialists, and other healthcare professionals who manage patients with MS.

EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES

This program is designed to address the following NAM competencies: provide patient-centered care and employ evidence-based practice.

At the conclusion of this activity, participants should be able to:

Integrate current evidence regarding criteria for diagnosing MS as early as possible in the course of disease
Assess the benefits of initiating DMTs early to obtain achievable treatment goals
Evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of available and emerging DMTs to provide optimal personalized MS treatment selections

ACCREDITATION

This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint providership of Penn State College of Medicine and Rockpointe. Penn State College of Medicine is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

CREDIT DESIGNATION

The Penn State College of Medicine designates this enduring material for a maximum of 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Information about CME credit for this activity is available by contacting Penn State at 717-531-6483 or ContinuingEd@hmc.psu.edu. Reference course #G6608-20-T.

FACULTY

PATRICIA K. COYLE, MD, FAAN, FANA
Professor and Interim Chair
Department of Neurology Director, MS Comprehensive Care Center
Stony Brook University Medical Center
Stony Brook, NY

Patricia K. Coyle, MD, FAAN, FANA is Interim Chair and Professor of Neurology, as well as Director of the Stony Brook Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Comprehensive Care Center, at the Stony Brook University Medical Center. She earned her medical degree and completed her residency in neurology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, MD, where she also completed a fellowship in neuroimmunology and neurovirology. Her areas of expertise include multiple sclerosis (MS), neuroimmunology, and neurologic infectious disease (in particular, Lyme disease).

Dr. Coyle has held multiple leadership positions at the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, the American Academy of Neurology, the American Neurological Association, and the National MS Society. She has served as an adviser to the FDA and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Coyle has received research funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National MS Society, and she is actively engaged in studies to understand and treat MS and other neurological diseases.

SUHAYL DHIB-JALBUT, MD
Professor and Chairman of Neurology
Ruth Dunietz Kushner and Michael Jay Serwitz Chair in Multiple Sclerosis
Rutgers-New Jersey Medical School and
Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
New Brunswick, NJ

Suhayl Dhib-Jalbut, MD is Professor and System Chairman of the Departments of Neurology at Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson (RWJ) Medical School and New Jersey Medical School. He also directs the RWJ Center for Multiple Sclerosis (MS). He is currently the immediate past president of the Americas Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ACTRIMS).

Dr. Dhib-Jalbut graduated Alpha-Omega-Alpha from the American University of Beirut in Lebanon and completed his neurology training at the University of Cincinnati. He then joined the Neuroimmunology Branch at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, MD, where he trained as a Physician-Scientist in MS and Neuroimmunology. Dr. Dhib-Jalbut was a faculty member at the University of Maryland Department of Neurology between 1991 and 2003 and worked closely with Kenneth Johnson, Chair of the Department of Neurology at that time.

Dr. Dhib-Jalbut’s extramurally funded research includes how MS therapies work, biomarkers of treatment response in MS, and (more recently) how the gut microbiome contributes to the risk of MS. To date, he has contributed more than 130 manuscripts to the scientific literature. He has served as Associate Editor of the Journal of Neuroimmunology and the MS Journal and is a member of the Editorial Boards of Journal of Interferon and Cytokine Research, Cytokine, Multiple Sclerosis and Demyelinating Diseases, and the MS Journal. He has served on several national and international scientific committees, including Chairmanship of the Scientific Committee for the World Congress on MS in Montreal in 2008.

Dr. Dhib-Jalbut served as President of ACTRIMS and presided over the joint ACTRIMS/ ECTRIMS Congress held in Boston in 2014. He has been on the “Best Doctors in America” list since 2009 and has received several awards and recognitions, including an NIH-NINDS Mentoring Award, the Norman H. Edelman Clinical Science Mentoring Award at Rutgers, the Medical Excellence Award from the National MS Society, the Outstanding Medical Scientist Award from the Edward J. Ill Excellence in Medicine Foundation, and the Excellence in Research Award from the New Jersey Health Foundation.

ABIM MOC DESIGNATION STATEMENT

Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn up to 1.0 Medical Knowledge MOC points in the American Board of Internal Medicine's (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program. Participants will earn MOC points equivalent to the amount of CME credits claimed for the activity. It is the CME activity provider’s responsibility to submit participant completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting ABIM MOC credit. To receive MOC points, you MUST pass the post-test and complete the evaluation. For ABIM MOC points, your information will be shared with the ABIM through Penn State’s ACCME Program and Activity Reporting System (PARS). Please allow 6-8 weeks for your MOC points to appear on your ABIM records.

ABPN MOC DESIGNATION STATEMENT

Diplomates of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (ABPN) must complete an average of 30 specialty and/or subspecialty CME credits per year, averaged over three years. Participation in this activity will support board certified psychiatrists and neurologists in contributing towards this MOC requirement set forth by the ABPN.

MIPS CREDIT DESIGNATION

Completion of this accredited CME activity meets the expectations of an Accredited Safety or Quality Improvement Program (IA_PSPA_28) for the Merit-based Incentive Payment Program (MIPS).

DISCLAIMER

The information provided at this CME/MOC/MIPS activity is for continuing education purposes only and is not meant to substitute for the independent medical judgment of a healthcare provider relative to diagnostic and treatment options of a specific patient’s medical condition. Recommendations for the use of particular therapeutic agents are based on the best available scientific evidence and current clinical guidelines. No bias towards or promotion for any agent discussed in this program should be inferred.

DISCLOSURES

Before the activity, all faculty and anyone who is in a position to have control over the content of this activity and their spouse/life partner will disclose the existence of any financial interest and/or relationship(s) they might have with any commercial interest producing healthcare goods/services to be discussed during their presentation(s): honoraria, expenses, grants, consulting roles, speakers bureau membership, stock ownership, or other special relationships. Presenters will inform participants of any off-label discussions. All identified conflicts of interest are thoroughly vetted by Penn State College of Medicine for fair balance, scientific objectivity of studies mentioned in the materials or used as the basis for content, and appropriateness of patient care recommendations.

Faculty Disclosures

The faculty reported the following relevant financial relationships that they or their spouse/partner have with commercial interests:

Patricia K. Coyle, MD, FAAN, FANA: Consultant: Accordant, Alexion, Bayer, Biogen Idec, Genentech/Roche, Genzyme/Sanofi, GlaxoSmithKline, Mylan, Novartis, Serono, TG Therapeutics; Research: Actelion, Alkermes, Corrona, Genentech/Roche, MedDay, Novartis

Suhayl Dhib-Jalbut, MD: Consultant: Genzyme, Novartis; Research: Biogen Idec

Non-faculty Content Contributors Disclosures

Non-faculty content contributors and/or reviewers reported the following relevant financial relationships that they or their spouse/partner have with commercial interests:

Chad Williamson, MS, MBA, CMPP; Blair St. Amand: Nothing to disclose

Penn State faculty and staff involved in the development or review of this material have nothing to disclose.

FDA DISCLOSURE

The contents of some CME/CE activities may contain discussions of non-approved or off-label uses of some agents mentioned. Please consult the prescribing information for full disclosure of approved uses.

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

In order to view this presentation, your computer must have audio capabilities (working speakers or headphones) and must have an internet browser capable of playing an HTML5 video.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PARTICIPANTS AND OBTAINING CME/MIPS CREDIT/MOC POINTS

There is no fee for this activity. To receive credit, participants must take the pre-test, view this activity in its entirety, and then complete the post-test, with a score of 75% or better, and evaluation. The estimated time for completion of this activity is 1 hour. For MIPS credit, participants must also complete follow-up surveys at 30 and 90 days post activity. Click here for more information about receiving MIPS credit. To receive their certificates, participants must demonstrate mastery of the presented material via the post-test. Participants are allowed to take the post-test multiple times.