Novel oral agents for multiple sclerosis.

In 1993, interferon beta-1b, the first clinically proven disease-modifying agent for multiple sclerosis, was approved, with several comparable agents following close behind. These agents have been beneficial in reducing relapse events and MRI lesions, but all require parenteral administration, leading some otherwise eligible patients to decline such therapies. Oral agents have been studied for decades with mixed results, but a small number of medications currently being tested in phase II/III clinical trials have shown promise in efficacy and tolerability. This review assesses the results of the more thoroughly studied of these agents, some of which may soon be approved for use in multiple sclerosis.