The clinical trial assessing the effects of magnetic brain stimulation (MBS) on multiple sclerosis (MS) welcomed its first participant Meg Denham, who was diagnosed with MS in 2010.

According to MS Australia, MS is the most common acquired chronic neurological disease affecting young adults, often diagnosed between the ages of 20 to 40.

In Australia, Tasmania consistently presents the highest rates of MS in the country.

In MS, the body's immune system mistakenly attacks and damages fatty material called myelin around the nerves.

Myelin is necessary for protecting and insulating nerves so the electrical messages the brain sends to the rest of the body travel quickly and efficiently.

The trial follows a phase one trial which found that MBS was safe and has significant potential to sustain brain insulation in MS.

Lead neuroscientist Professor Kaylene Young hopes to open the trial to a broader group of people.

"We're really excited that we've gotten it to the second stage in the clinic," Dr Young said.

She said MBS works by placing a magnetic coil over the head, which creates a magnetic field over the brain.

"One thing magnetic fields can do is induce small amounts of electrical currents in the brain."

"In some ways, you can turn on the magnetic field and it massages the electrical activity of the brain underneath."

She said the patient is awake for the process and the process is painless.

"The magnetic strength is low, so the person may or may not feel a little tingly sensation on the scalp, but that's all they will be aware of."

"We're not forcing the brain cells to fire erratically. It's like taking the activity of the brain up a tiny fraction to make it more likely to amplify its own natural pattern of activity.

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Dr Young said MBS had been used before to activate the brain and show how quickly a nerve impulse can move to a muscle, but it's the first time the low intensity stimulation has been applied to people with MS.

"It's the first time magnetic brain stimulation has been used to try and promote and increase the amount of insulation that's in the brain," she said.

The trial's first participant Meg Denham is a member of the consumer and community reference group at Menzies.

"They gave a presentation to us about the trials and I thought I'd love to be involved in that," Ms Denham said.

"It seemed like a really good and important piece of research."

She said it's amazing to see the new trials make progress in mitigating some of the effects of MS.

"That's what this trial is about, repairing some of the damage MS causes in the brain, and potentially getting rid of some of those symptoms forever."

She said It's crucial that people get involved in the trials.

"If we don't, they just stay in the lab. We really need to get these kinds of things out into the community of people with MS because that's how we start making a difference," she said.

"It's a very small thing to do, but a very exciting thing to be involved in."

For more information on the trial visit the MStrials website.