Authorities in the UK have approved the first ever pill for sufferers of multiple sclerosis for public use after successful trials.

The pill, called fingolimod was tested at the Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham and was found to be safe for use. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has now recommended the pill and will benefit patients who continue to have relapses even while receiving current treatments.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) can cause fatigue, vision problems and difficulties walking among patients. The neurological condition cannot be cured with the treatment but it can manage the symptoms.

Dr Nikos Evangelou, an associate professor of neurology at the QMC has said that the new pill will be more effective and more convenient for patients than the currently available treatments, most common of which are injections.

Dr Evangelou said, "Most of our patients take injections at home, and they get used to having them, but taking a pill is always easier. Compared to the traditional medicines we give, this appears to be twice as effective without having any side effects."

The new pill was being tested on sample of patients at the QMC from the previous four years and the clinical trials are still continuing. According to estimates, about 100,000 people in the UK have MS and it affects twice as many women as men.