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Editorial| Volume 9, SUPPLEMENT 1, S1-S3, September 2016

Time and brain health both matter in multiple sclerosis

      The wide global variation in the diagnosis and management of multiple sclerosis (MS) underpins the need for consensus in the field and provides the backdrop for the development of a policy. When our global, multidisciplinary group first met to draft a consensus report, or policy, on MS, we all agreed that ‘Time matters’ in the treatment and management of this disease. We should be aiming to maximize the lifelong brain health of people with MS through early diagnosis, early treatment, proactively monitoring and recording disease activity, treating to a target with an appropriate disease-modifying therapy (DMT), incorporating shared decision-making and adopting an holistic approach to the management of MS (Fig. 1).
      Fig. 1
      Fig. 1We recommend a therapeutic strategy that aims to preserve CNS tissue and maximize lifelong neurological reserve (an important component of brain health) by minimizing disease activity. (CNS, central nervous system; DMT, disease-modifying therapy).
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