Characterization of disease severity and stability in NMOSD: a global clinical record review with patient interviews
Journal: Neurology and Therapy; February 24, 2023
Author(s): Marco Capobianco, Marius Ringelstein, Carly Welsh, Patricia Lobo, Gabrielle deFiebre, Marco Lana-Peixoto, Jiawei Wang, Ju-Hong Min & Dean M. Wingerchuk
NMOSD disease severity and stability in real-life settings globally
This study evaluated how NMOSD disease severity and stability is classified globally by conducting an online survey with 389 neurologists from the USA, Germany, Italy, Brazil, South Korea, and China (representing data from 1185 patients) and conducting telephonic interviews with 33 patients receiving maintenance therapy for NMOSD. The results showed wide variations, both between neurologists and patients and across geographies, in how a relapse was defined and how relapse severity was classified. Neurologists relied on clinical assessments when classifying a relapse and viewed each relapse in isolation, whereas patients subjectively evaluated relapses in terms of how their daily life was affected and how the relapse compared with prior relapses. There was a similar disconnect in the definition of disease stability, with patients placing more emphasis on zero relapses than neurologists did. A related study used the same neurologist survey and patient interviews to evaluate how NMOSD is managed in real-life settings globally.
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