Multiple Sclerosis and Neuroimmunology Center
Virtual Patient Education Day 2020
Please click the following link to attend our Virtual Patient Education Day on Saturday, November 7th:
The event begins at 8:30 a.m. EST and will feature presentations from many of our wonderful MS Center faculty, staff, and other affiliates.
Movement for MS
Movement for MS is a dance class for people with Multiple Sclerosis, their caregivers, and loved ones. In the welcoming and joyful environment of the dance studio, Movement for MS empowers participants to explore their movement potential in fun and creative ways while building community, collaboration, and physical confidence.
Want to learn more? Click the following link to be taken to the official Movement for MS webpage: https://lombardi.georgetown.edu/artsandhumanities/special-events/movementformmultiplesclerosis/
The above link contains more information about the program and also includes information on how to sign up. Questions and sign-up requests may be emailed to Morgan Kulesza at morgan.kulesza@georgetown.edu.
Multiple Sclerosis and COVID-19
Schedule An Appointment
Click the button below to learn how to schedule an appointment with one of our providers:
Overview
The largest center of its kind in the mid-Atlantic, the Georgetown Multiple Sclerosis and Neuroimmunology Center offers diagnosis and treatment of neuroimmunology disorders including multiple sclerosis (MS), neuromyelitis optica (NMO), vasculitis, myasthenia gravis, neuro-sarcoidosis, Sjogren’s disease, stiff person syndrome and other paraneoplastic syndromes. The Georgetown MS Center has an international reputation as a referral center and is known for clinical research and a comprehensive approach to patient care.
Spasticity Clinic
We provide comprehensive evaluation and treatment of spasticity – a condition characterized by muscle stiffness, tightness, cramping and spasms of the upper and lower extremities that can impair independent ambulation and interfere with care giving. Neurological conditions such as MS that affect the brain and spinal cord may cause spasticity in patients. In addition to oral anti-spasmodic agents, the Georgetown Spasticity Clinic specializes in the administration of botulinum toxin by injection, as well as evaluation and screening tests necessary for intrathecal baclofen pump (ITBP) placement, refills and coordination of any surgical or radiological interventions that may be necessary to repair or remove the pump or attached tubes. The clinic’s multidisciplinary team-based approach includes physical therapy, occupational therapy and neurosurgery.
Neuromyelitis Optica (NMO) Clinic
Our clinic specializes in diagnosing and treating patients with NMO, an autoimmune disease that causes optic neuritis or transverse myelitis. Once thought to be a form of multiple sclerosis, NMO is now recognized as a separate neurologic disease that requires unique specialized treatments. In addition, we are involved in clinical trials investigating new treatments for this rare neuroimmunologic disorder.
Neuro-Ophthalmology Clinic
The neuro-ophthalmology clinic specializes in the treatment of vision loss due to neurologic diseases such as optic neuritis, multiple sclerosis, NMO and myasthenia gravis. Additionally, we see patients who suffer from pseudotumor cerebri (idiopathic intracranial hypertension), ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION), giant cell arteritis and other rare forms of vision loss. Our clinic performs visual field perimetry, optical coherence tomography (OCT), fundus photography and other advanced diagnostic imaging.
National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) Recognition as a Patient-Centered Specialty Practice
NCQA recognition indicates that an organization is well-managed, follows medical evidence and delivers high quality care and service by:
- Improving patient outcomes
- Improving the quality of healthcare
- Timely access to comprehensive care
- Enhanced communication between patients and providers
- Continuous coordination and provision of care
- Intensive focus on quality and safety
- Reducing total cost of healthcare
- Addressing racial and ethnic disparities
Patient Education Day
The Georgetown Multiple Sclerosis and Immunology Center hosts an annual Multiple Sclerosis Patient Education Event. At the event, our MS specialists give talks on disease treatment, symptom management and care of the MS patient. Last year we had over 350 people attend the event. The audience was made up of patients with multiple sclerosis and their family members from the D.C., Maryland and Virginia region.
Movement for MS
Movement for MS is a program of the MedStar Georgetown University Hospital Arts & Humanities Program and the Department of Neurology. An 8-10-week dance class for people living with Multiple Sclerosis, their caregivers and loved ones. The class combines stretching, breath work, exploration of rhythm, and seated and standing dances. This program empowers participants to explore their movement potential in a fun and creative way, while building community, collaboration, and physical confidence.
OWN MS
OWN MS (Outreach for Wellness in Newly-diagnosed young adults with Multiple Sclerosis) is a program created by the Georgetown MS Center, which focuses on outreach and education for newly diagnosed MS patients. The program features quarterly educational dinners with MS care providers at local restaurants. The OWN MS program has the following goals:
- To provide timely, targeted educational outreach to newly-diagnosed young adults with MS using a novel presentation format, optimized for both virtual (online) and local (live) programs,
- To engage newly-diagnosed young adults with MS in open and informative discussions with each other and with our health care team, in order to improve their ability to communicate with family, friends, employers and other health care providers,
- To foster the development of wellness in newly-diagnosed young adults with MS by fostering community, improving self-image and encouraging healthy lifestyle habits among newly-diagnosed patients with MS.
These talks will be available as an online resource in video and podcast formats, but will be optimally presented live and locally through our Community Outreach Seminars: We will organize monthly educational seminars for newly-diagnosed young adults with MS that will be presented in three different urban and suburban locations in and around Washington, DC.
Education Program to Improve Self-Management in Newly Diagnosed Individuals with Multiple Sclerosis
This is a structured education program using health-related information to increase an individual’s knowledge regarding their condition and improve their ability to perform self-management skills and tasks. Content includes basic pathophysiology of the brain and spinal cord, basic immunology, symptomology and treatment, relapse, disease modifying therapies, as well as the disease process.
Clinical Care
To make an appointment, please call (202) 444-8525 or use this online form.
Make a Gift
Private gifts make our research and community service efforts possible, and are entirely tax-deductible. Please follow these instructions to support the Multiple Sclerosis Center with your online gift:
- Visit the Georgetown University Medical Center Giving website
- Under Direct your gift, choose Other (Please indicate the department, program, or other designation)
- In the Other box, type Neurology Department – Multiple Sclerosis Center
- Complete the form
If you have any trouble using the website, please call 202-687-1690 or email Georgetown Giving at giving@georgetown.edu, Monday-Friday, 9:00am-5:00pm.