• Center on Health Equity & Access
  • Clinical
  • Health Care Cost
  • Health Care Delivery
  • Insurance
  • Policy
  • Technology
  • Value-Based Care

Dr Thomas Frisell Addresses Cardiac Safety of Ozanimod Versus Fingolimod in MS

Video

Patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) have a generally increased risk of cardiovascular disease, and some evidence is emerging that disease-modifying treatments may alter this risk. Thomas Frisell, PhD, coordinator of the Clinical Epidemiology Unit, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden, discusses whether newer treatments for MS, such as ozanimod, may present an improved cardiac safety profile for patients with MS versus older treatments, such as fingolimod.

Patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) have a generally increased risk of cardiovascular disease, and some evidence is emerging that disease-modifying treatments may alter this risk. Thomas Frisell, PhD, coordinator of the Clinical Epidemiology Unit, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden, discusses whether newer treatments for MS, such as ozanimod, may present an improved cardiac safety profile for patients with MS versus older treatments, such as fingolimod.

Transcript

Do newer drugs like ozanimod present an improved cardiac safety profile for patients with MS?

So that has been argued, because that’s a drug that works like fingolimod, but is more specific, or selective, so it should have less of that transient heartrate effect. And that sounds good, right?

Well, in our data, we didn’t see an increased risk of cardiovascular disease in fingolimod either, so I’m not sure. Our data wasn’t perhaps big enough, and we didn’t have enough follow-up to really rule out increased risk on fingolimod. So it’s too early to say whether the new therapies will actually be beneficial compared to fingolimod, I would say.

Related Videos
Sam Peasah, PhD, MBA, RPh, director for the Center of High-Value Health Care at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC)
Kimberly Westrich, MA, chief strategy officer, NPC
Marla Black Morgan, MD, Phoebe Neurology Associates
Sam Peasah, PhD, MBA, RPh, director for the Center of High-Value Health Care at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC)
Bridgette Picou, LVN, ACLPN, The Well Project
Laura Bobolts, PharmD, BCOP, senior vice president of clinical strategy and growth at OncoHealth
Adam Colburn, JD, associate vice president for congressional affairs, AMCP
Richard Nowak, MD, MS, Yale School of Medicine
AMCP Recap 2025
Giulio Cossu, MD
Related Content
© 2025 MJH Life Sciences
AJMC®
All rights reserved.