Can an antihistamine help heal MS?
NCT ID NCT02040298
First seen Jun 26, 2026 · Last updated Jun 26, 2026
Summary
This phase 2 trial tested clemastine fumarate, a common allergy medicine, to see if it could repair damaged nerves in people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis. Fifty participants took either the drug or a placebo for several months. The study measured nerve signals in the eyes and brain to check for improvement.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- clemastine fumarate (an antihistamine drug)
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could point toward a treatment that helps repair nerve damage in people with multiple sclerosis.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-phase trial with only 50 people. The drug is being tested for a new use, and it may not work or could cause side effects like fatigue.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
-
Phase 2
Tests whether the treatment actually works, and watches for side effects, in a larger group.
- Participants
-
50 people
The number who actually took part.
- Start date
-
Jan 2014
- Finished
-
Apr 2016
- Lead sponsor
-
Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
-
18 to 60 years
- Sex
-
Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
-
Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Relapsing remitting Multiple Sclerosis by 2010 Revised McDonald Criteria * Age 18-60. * Latency delay \> 125 milliseconds on baseline full-field transient pattern reversal visual evoked potential (VEP) in at least one eye (electrophysiological evidence of demyelination) * Retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) \> 70 microns on Spectralis Domain Optical Coherence Topography (SD-OCT) in the same eye meeting criteria for latency delay (sufficient axons) * No optic neuritis in prior 6 months * Stable immunomodulatory therapy - no switch or planned switch in \> 6 months and no change in doses in 30 days prior to screening * Use of appropriate contraception during period of trial (females of child bearing potential) * Understand and sign informed consent. * Expanded disability status scale (EDSS) 0-6.0 (inclusive) Exclusion Criteria: * Major ophthalmologic disease / Concomitant ophthalmologic disorders (e.g. diabetes, macular degeneration, glaucoma, severe myopia , etc). * Myopia \> -7 Diopters (Severe myopia) * History of significant cardiac conduction block * History of cancer * Known optic neuritis in involved eye \> 5 years ago OR disease duration \> 15 years * Suicidal ideation or behaviour in 6 months prior to screening * Pregnancy, breastfeeding, or planning to become pregnant. * Involved with other study protocol simultaneously without prior approval. 9. Concomitant use of Dalfampridine (4AP or diamino4AP) or any other formulation of 4AP or diamino4AP. * Concomitant use of any other putative remyelinating therapy as determined by investigator. * Treatment with corticosteroids within 30 days prior to screening * Prior treatment with total lymphoid irradiation, T cell or T cell receptor vaccination * Prior treatment with alemtuzumab, mitoxantrone, or cyclophosphamide * Serum creatinine \> 1.5 mg/dL; aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT) or alkaline phosphatase \> 2 times the upper limit of normal * History of drug or alcohol abuse within the past year * Untreated vitamin B12 deficiency (as determined by B12 serological assessments and metabolites including methylmalonic acid (MMA) and homocysteine) or untreated hypothyroidism * Clinically significant cardiac, metabolic, hematologic, hepatic, immunologic, urologic, endocrinologic, neurologic, pulmonary, psychiatric, dermatologic, psychiatric allergic, renal or other major diseases that in the PI's judgment may affect interpretation of study results or patient safety. * History of or presence of clinically significant medical illness or laboratory abnormality that, in the opinion of the investigator would preclude participation in the study
Get updates
Get notified about this study
Sign up to get updates when this study changes or when new studies for Multiple sclerosis, relapsing-remitting are added.
Genom att skicka in godkänner du våra Användarvillkor
Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
-
UCSF Multiple Sclerosis Center
San Francisco, California, 94518, United States
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Can diet ease the crushing fatigue of multiple sclerosis?
- Which MS treatment strategy preserves the brain better?
- Can a gentle electric zap to the brain restore memory in MS?
- Brain scans may reveal how MS drug affects mental fatigue
- Brain scans could reveal which MS drugs fight mental exhaustion
- Brain shrinkage as a crystal ball for MS progression?