27 March 2025
News
A recent study conducted by the Nîmes University Hospital offers new hope for the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS). Directed by Pr Éric Thouvenot, Head of the Neurology Department and member of the FCRIN4MS network - the national network dedicated to clinical research into MS and awarded the F-CRIN label - this research reveals that taking high-dose vitamin D could significantly reduce disease activity.
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Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune disease: the immune system attacks the myelin sheath, protecting nerve cells. Vitamin D deficiency has been associated with an increased risk of developing MS and more severe disease progression. However, until now, no study had demonstrated the therapeutic effect of vitamin D after disease onset.
The D-Lay MS study, funded by the national Hospital Clinical Research Program (PHRC), followed 303 patients in 36 French centers over a two-year period. Participants were randomized to receive either a 100,000 IU ampoule of vitamin D every two weeks, or a placebo. The results showed that 60.3% of patients on vitamin D developed new disease activity, compared with 74.1% in the placebo group, representing a 34% reduction in the risk of disease activity. In addition, the median time to onset of disease activity was almost doubled in vitamin D-treated patients (432 days vs. 224 days). No serious vitamin D-related adverse effects were observed.
"In summary, high-dose vitamin D supplementation is safe, well tolerated and effective in reducing early-stage disease activity. These promising results make vitamin D a potential candidate for adjunctive therapy in the MS therapeutic strategy." Pr Eric Thouvenot
Published in the Journal of the American Medical Association(JAMA), this study highlights the importance of vitamin D in the management of multiple sclerosis and opens the way to new therapeutic approaches for patients with this disease.
