Multiple Sclerosis and IPT

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease in which, many people think, the body's immune system attacks the myelin sheath around nerve axons. There is some evidence that this attack is triggered, at least in some cases, by a viral or bacterial infection.

If it indeed turns out that MS is fundamentally caused by a central nervous system (CNS) infection, it becomes an excellent candidate for IPT, which has reportedly been used with such effectiveness against syphilis, herpes, and HIV infections of the CNS. One could hypothesize, therefore, that IPT, with its apparent ability to transport antiviral and antibiotic drugs into even the least accessible compartments of the CNS, might be an ideal treatment to try for eliminating such hidden infections in MS patients. Perhaps IPT could also help bring the immune system back into balance, as it apparently does in arthritis and other immune-related diseases. And, by analogy to the apparent nerve regeneration by IPT in polio and stroke patients, when used in combination with the right drugs and/or nutrients, IPT may also help rebuild the myelin on damaged nerves in MS patients. IGF-1, with which insulin cross-reacts, is a known potent stimulator of myelination (Endocrinology 140(7):3063-3072).

Enough theory. What about practice?

The late Jean-Claude Paquette MD, in his book Medicine of Hope, claims to have treated one MS patient using IPT, the first such case in history. Before treatment, the 43-year-old woman complained of fatigue, could only walk 100 meters, and spent most of the day in bed. After the first IPT treatment, she felt more energy, could go shopping by herself, and did not have to go to bed when she got back. After the third treatment, she spent the holidays without fatigue, even with many house guests and late nights. And after the fourth treatment she was planning to go cross-country skiing. He lost touch with her after that, so we do not know the long-term outcome. And we do not yet know what medications he used for her IPT treatments, although the details are probably still among his papers.

Isn't this enough of a clue for someone to try IPT for some more MS patients? As Dr. Paquette said it, "If we never test this therapy in diseases known as irreversible, who will be able to appreciate it fully?"