More patients with pediatric onset MS (POMS) were free of new or newly enlarging (N or NE) T2 hyperintense lesions with dimethyl fumarate (DMF) versus interferon β-1a (IFNβ-1a) treatment, and the annualized relapse rate is lower with DMF, according to a study published in JAMA Network Open. Patrick Vermeersch, MD, PhD, and
colleagues examined patients with POMS who were aged 10 to less than 18. A total of 150 patients were randomly assigned to DMF (N=78) or IFNβ-1a (N=72). Among 103 patients who completed the trial, the proportion with no N or NE T2 hyperintense lesions at week 96 was 16.1% for DMF, compared with 4.9% for IFNβ-1a; in a sensitivity analysis among the intention-to-treat population, the proportions were 12.8% and 2.8%, respectively. The estimated proportions of patients who remained relapse-free at week 96 were 66.2% for DMF and 52.3% for IFNβ-1a. The
adjusted annualized relapse rates were 0.24 and 0.53 for DMF and IFNβ-1a, respectively, at week 96. “DMF led to meaningful improvements in radiological and clinical outcomes in patients with POMS, with a positive benefit-risk balance,” Dr. Vermeersch and colleagues wrote.
