Are Oral and Intravenous Steroids Equivalent for Multiple Sclerosis Relapses?

Small studies have suggested that oral corticosteroids are equivalent to intravenous (IV) corticosteroids for managing relapses of multiple sclerosis (MS). Now, French researchers have compared the two approaches in a larger multicenter study that involved 199 patients with relapsing-remitting MS who had experienced relapses within the previous 15 days. Patients received 1000 mg of either oral or IV methylprednisolone daily for 3 days (plus either IV or oral placebo).

In a per-protocol analysis, the proportions of patients who improved by day 28 on a standardized functional scale were similar in the oral and IV groups (81% and 80%), and about 70% of patients in each group had experienced no additional relapses at 6 months. Proportions of pat…