Patients who suffer from optic neuritis can reduce by half their risk of developing multiple sclerosis within two years if they are treated with a combination of intravenous and oral steroids, UC Davis researchers have found. The reseachers made the finding at the UC Davis School of Medicine and Medical Center while investigating a treatment for patients with optic neuritis, a frequent precurser of multiple sclerosis. Optic neuritis is an acute inflammation of the optic nerve that results in rapid vision loss, sometimes leading to blindness.