The 67th American Academy of Neurology Annual Meeting officially begins today here in beautiful Washington, D.C. Last year’s meeting in Philadelphia broke attendance records and served as an important platform for doctors, researchers, trainees and allied health professionals to discuss highlights in MS research, along with updates in other brain diseases. That made me hopeful that this year’s meeting would be even more exciting, and would reflect the fast-paced, progressive nature of neurology – both on the research and treatment fronts. The American Academy of Neurology Annual Meeting – AAN for short – is one of the largest meetings in the world devoted to exchanging new knowledge and findings in neurology, identifying gaps in research and care of neurological disease, and arming neurologists-in-training with the tools they need to effectively treat and engage patients. This year over 2,500 cutting-edge abstracts were submitted, many of which are focused on MS in areas such as risk factors, co-morbidities, inflammation, clinical trials, emerging treatments, diet, pediatric MS, and symptom management. Over the next few days I will tackle the depth and breadth of this research by attending scientific lectures and poster sessions, in order to provide you with research updates both big and small that are presented throughout the week.
Stay tuned!