MRI measurements of atrophy in an important area of the brain can provide an accurate predictor of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a new study.
According to the researchers, these atrophy measurements offer an improvement over current methods for evaluating patients at risk for MS. Approximately 85% of people with MS suffer an initial, short-term neurological episode known as clinically isolated syndrome (CIS). A definitive MS diagnosis is based on a combination of factors, including medical history, neurological exams, development of a second clinical attack and detection of new and enlarging lesions with contrast-enhanced or T2-weighted MRI. For the study, Dr. Zivadinov, from the Buffalo Neuroimaging Analysis Center of the University at Buffalo in Buffalo, and colleagues investigated the association between the development of thalamic atrophy and conversion to clinically definite MS. The researchers used contrast-enhanced MRI for initial assessment of 216 CIS patients. They performed follow-up scans at six months, one year and two years. Over two years, 92 of 216 patients, or 42.6%, converted to clinically definite MS. Decreases in thalamic volume and increase in lateral ventricle volumes were the only MRI measures independently associated with the development of clinically definite MS. The findings suggest that measurement of thalamic atrophy and increase in ventricular size may help identify patients at high risk for conversion to clinically definite MS in future clinical trials involving CIS patients.
