INCOMIN study: high-dose interferon-β superior in MS

High-dose interferon (IFN)-β-1b ['Betaferon', 'Betaseron'] therapy is significantly more effective than a standard regimen of IFN-β-1a ['Avonex'] in the treatment of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS), according to final results from the INdependent COMparison Of INterferon (INCOMIN) study presented at the 54th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) [Denver, US; April 2002] and subsequently published in The Lancet.1,2 Over the 2-year follow-up period, 51% of patients treated with IFN-β-1b remained relapse-free, compared with 36% of those receiving IFN-β-1a. The proportion of patients in whom MRI scans showed no development of new brain lesions was also greater in IFN-β-1b, compared with IFN-β-1a recipients (55 vs 26%). High-dose IFN-β-1b was also significantly more effective than IFN-β-1a therapy in a 1-year dose-reduction study conducted by the same researchers; results from this study were also presented at the AAN meeting.3