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Women with Multiple Sclerosis
 
Women with Multiple Sclerosis: Improving Quality of Life and Reproductive Health Outcomes

ARHP is sponsoring Women with Multiple Sclerosis: Improving Quality of Life and Reproductive Health Outcomes for health care providers.  The goal of this program is to improve Primary Care Physicians’ competence to accurately counsel, treat and manage MS women with co-morbid chronic conditions to enhance health knowledge, combat misconceptions, and improve their reproductive health outcomes. 

For more information about the program, please contact Lanita L. Williams at lwilliams@arhp.org or (202) 466-3825.

Background

A woman’s risk for MS is nearly three times that of a male’s, including the highest prevalence of diagnosis during reproductive years.1 Women living with MS and other chronic conditions are often trapped by misconceptions and bounded by lack of information about treatment variations and/or symptom management.6-7 In addition, women suffering from pre-existing or dormant chronic pains can be aggravated by the additional provocations of MS flares. MS symptoms are debilitating and often interfere with all domains of health, including the effect on work-life, social relationships, physical well-being, emotional coping, and overall quality of life. Symptoms include: tiredness, sensation disturbance of limbs, face and body, overall numbness, motor deficit, pain, bladder dysfunction, depression, anxiety, and cognitive disturbance.10, 12 All chronic and disabling conditions compromise well-being and quality of life.

Program Design and Educational Activities

  • Accredited Peer-Reviewed Curriculum
  • Integration of content into the Curricula Organizer for Reproductive Health Education (CORE), ARHP’s on-line, open-access collection of peer-reviewed, evidence-based teaching materials
  • Two live webinars
    • Webinar 1 will focus on Contraception and Pregnancy Management
    • Webinar 2 will focus on  Sexuality
  • Clinical Minute Activities: To complement the webinars, expert advisors and program staff will identify key segments from the curriculum that would be appropriate as stand-alone mini modules. These sections will be adapted into text-based mini modules containing no more than 1,500 words, followed by a brief quiz that participants can complete for credit. The Clinical Minute Activity will be available on the ARHP portal and accessible to providers nationwide.
    • Today’s Contraception Options for Women with Multiple Sclerosis
    • Management of Pregnancy for Women with Multiple Sclerosis
    • Addressing Sexuality Concerns for Women with Multiple Sclerosis
  • Live Expert Panel Presentation at Reproductive Health 2012

Curriculum Learning Objectives

At the conclusion of the medical education sessions, participants should be able to:

  • Demonstrate current knowledge about MS, including symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, and pain management
  • Improve health outcomes among patients living with MS
  • Counsel and manage the treatment of women with MS using an interdisciplinary approach
  • Address the reproductive health issues affecting women with MS, including contraception and pregnancy

Intended Audience

The intended audiences for this activity are women’s health and primary care providers, including physicians, nurse practitioners, nurse-midwives, physician assistants, and other professionals who work in obstetrics/gynecology, neurology, family medicine, and related fields.

Accreditation

The live and archived webinars session associated with this program will be accredited for continuing medical education, nursing and pharmacy credit hours.

Funding

This project is funded through educational grants from EMD Serono, Inc., Pfizer Inc, and Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation.

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  1. Orton, SM, Herrera, BM, Yee, IM, et al. Sex ratio of multiple sclerosis in Canada: a longitudinal study, Lancet Neurol. 2006 (5): 932-6.
  2. Confavreux, C, Hutchinson, M, et al. Rate of pregnancy-related relapse in multiple sclerosis: Pregnancy in Multiple Sclerosis Group. N Engl J Med. 1998 (339): 285–91.
  3. Saraste, M. Vaisanen, S, et al. Clinical and immunologic evaluation of women with multiple sclerosis during and after pregnancy. Gend Med. 2007 (4): 45–55.
  4. Mazzariol C, Di Tonno F, Piazza N, Pianon C. Sexual dysfunctions in female with neurological disorders. Urologia. 2010 Jan-Mar;77(1):21-7.
  5. Olascoaga, J. Quality of life and multiple sclerosis. Rev Neurol. 2010 Sep 1;51(5):279-88.