Top Studies in Neurology From 2023

Hans-Christoph Diener, MD, PhD

January 04, 2024

This transcript has been edited for clarity.

Dear colleagues, I'm Christoph Diener from the medical faculty of University Duisburg-Essen in Germany. Today I want to report the 10 most important studies published in 2023.

New Drugs in Alzheimer's and ALS

Number one: monoclonal antibodies against beta amyloid for the treatment of early Alzheimer's disease. For two monoclonal antibodies, lecanemab and donanemab, there was efficacy in slowing the disease progression. In practical terms, these two treatments pose significant problems. First, for diagnosis, you need PET-CT. The therapy has to be done via IV regularly, every 2 weeks or every 4 weeks. There are a number of side effects, which need MRI control, and the treatment is very expensive. We have, at present, no infrastructure for treating these patients. We also have a number of monoclonal antibodies that were not effective.

Number two: amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. There is a small subgroup, 1%-2% of patients, who have mutations in the SOD1 gene. There is now a new antisense oligonucleotide called tofersen, which reduces the concentration of SOD1 [protein] in the cerebrospinal fluid. There is a clinical phase 2 trial ongoing for efficacy.

Epilepsy, MS, and Gliomas

Number three: modern antiepileptic drugstaken during pregnancy in females with

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