Normal-appearing grey and white matter T1 abnormality in early relapsing–remitting multiple sclerosis: a longitudinal study

• Published in: Multiple sclerosis 2007-03, Vol.13 (2), p.169-177
• Main Authors: Davies, Gr, Hadjiprocopis, A, Altmann, DR, Chard, Dt, Griffin, Cm, Rashid, W, Parker, Gj, Tofts, Ps, Kapoor, R, Thompson, Aj, Miller, Dh
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Biological and medical sciences; Brain - pathology; Degenerative and inherited degenerative diseases of the nervous system. Leukodystrophies. Prion diseases; Disease Progression; Early Diagnosis; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Humans; Immunologic Factors - therapeutic use; Immunomodulators; Interferon-beta - therapeutic use; Longitudinal Studies; Magnetic Resonance Imaging - methods; Magnetic Resonance Imaging - standards; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Multiple sclerosis and variants. Guillain barré syndrome and other inflammatory polyneuropathies. Leukoencephalitis; Multiple Sclerosis, Relapsing-Remitting - drug therapy; Multiple Sclerosis, Relapsing-Remitting - pathology; Nerve Fibers, Myelinated - pathology; Neurology; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Prognosis; Regression Analysis; Reproducibility of Results
• ISSN: 1352-4585; 1477-0970
• DOI: 10.1177/1352458506070726

Objective To investigate the presence and evolution of T1 relaxation time abnormalities in normal-appearing white matter (NAWM) and grey matter (GM), early in the course of relapsing–remitting multiple sclerosis (MS). Methods Twenty-three patients with early relapsing–remitting MS and 14 healthy controls were imaged six monthly for up to three years. Mean follow-up was 26 months for MS patients and 24 months for controls. Dual-echo fast-spin echo and gradient-echo proton-density and T1-weighted data sets (permitting the calculation of a T1 map) were acquired in all subjects. GM and NAWM T1 histograms were produced and a hierarchical regression model was used to investigate changes in T1 over time. Results At baseline, significant patient-control differences were seen, both in NAWM (P = 0.001) and in GM (P = 0.01). At follow-up, there was no evidence for a serial change in either mean T1 or peak-location for either NAWM or GM. There was weak evidence for a decline in patient NAWM peak-height and also evidence for a decline in control GM peak-height. Conclusion There are significant and persistent abnormalities of NAWM and GM T1 in early relapsing-remitting MS. Further studies should address whether such T1 measures have a role in prognosis or therapeutic monitoring. Multiple Sclerosis 2007; 13:169–177. http://msj.sagepub.com