Results from a multiple sclerosis relapse clinic

A multiple sclerosis (MS) relapse clinic can lead to early diagnosis and management of MS relapses, yet published outcomes from MS relapse clinics are scarce.

We analysed the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust (BHSCT) relapse clinic over a 12 month period.

Only 16 % of attendees were diagnosed with a relapse, defined as new neurological symptoms with radiological evidence of new disease activity. Pseudorelapse was a more common cause of presentation (19 %) than relapse. Corticosteroid therapy was administered in 3 % of all attendances.

This low figure highlights the importance of clinical evaluation of new symptoms, justifies caution in corticosteroid prescribing and may reflect the impact of highly-effective therapies. We encourage other groups to publish their relapse clinic findings to best characterise the frequency of relapses and the utility of such services using real world data.