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Front Neurol 2021 21;12:651084. Epub 2021 May 21.

Assistance Publique des Hôpitaux de Paris, APHP, Hôpital Saint Antoine, Neurology Department, Paris, France.

Particulate matter (PM) of aerodynamic diameter smaller than 10 μm (PM) has been associated with multiple sclerosis (MS) relapse. However, the impact of smaller PM with a greater ability to penetrate human organism has never been assessed. We evaluated the impact of PM smaller than 2. Read More

Clin Spine Surg 2021 Jun 3. Epub 2021 Jun 3.

Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, MD.

Summary Of Background: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory disease that can cause physical and neurological dysfunction. Patients with MS are living longer and undergoing more orthopedic procedures, but the risk of patients with MS undergoing posterior lumbar fusion (PLF) has not been studied in literature before.

Objective: This study aims to (1) analyze the rates of postoperative complications of MS patients undergoing primary PLF and (2) analyze the economic burden associated with these surgeries in the MS population compared with patients without MS. Read More

Cureus 2021 Apr 26;13(4):e14690. Epub 2021 Apr 26.

Department of Medicine, Ministry of the National Guard-Health Affairs, Jeddah, SAU.

Combined central and peripheral demyelination (CCPD) is a rare disorder characterized by demyelinating lesions in both the central and peripheral nervous systems. The following case report is of a 29-year-old man who presented with a three-month history of progressive lower and upper limb weakness associated with facial and arm tremor, as well as urinary hesitancy. Brain and spine magnetic resonance imaging showed multiple demyelinating plaques. Read More

FEBS J 2021 May 17. Epub 2021 May 17.

IRCCS Humanitas Clinical and Research Center, Rozzano, Italy.

Intragravidic and perinatal infections, acting through either direct viral effect or immune-mediated responses, are recognized causes of liability for neurodevelopmental disorders in the progeny. The large amounts of epidemiological data and the wealth of information deriving from animal models of gestational infections have contributed to delineate, in the last years, possible underpinning mechanisms for this phenomenon, including defects in neuronal migration, impaired spine and synaptic development, and altered activation of microglia. Recently, dysfunctions of the neurovascular unit and anomalies of the brain vasculature have unexpectedly emerged as potential causes at the origin of behavioral abnormalities and psychiatric disorders consequent to prenatal and perinatal infections. Read More

Mult Scler Relat Disord 2021 Apr 25;52:102972. Epub 2021 Apr 25.

Bristol Myers Squibb, 3551 Lawrenceville Rd., Princeton, NJ, 08540 USA.

Background: A growing number of immunomodulating disease-modifying therapies are available for treatment of relapsing multiple sclerosis (RMS). In the absence of randomized head-to-head trials, matching-adjusted indirect comparisons (MAICs) can be used to adjust for cross-trial differences and evaluate the comparative efficacy and safety of these agents. We used MAIC methodology to indirectly compare key outcomes with ozanimod (OZM) and teriflunomide (TERI) in the treatment of RMS. Read More

Dev Neurobiol 2021 May 4. Epub 2021 May 4.

Department of Anesthesiology, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA.

Cognitive impairment is often observed in multiple sclerosis and its animal models, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). Using mice with immunization-induced EAE, we have previously shown that the stability of cortical synapses is markedly decreased before the clinical onset of EAE. In this study, we examined learning-dependent structural synaptic plasticity in a spontaneous EAE model. Read More

J Neurol 2021 May 3. Epub 2021 May 3.

Department of Human Neurosciences, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy.

As atrophy represents the most relevant driver of progression in multiple sclerosis (MS), we investigated the impact of different patterns of brain and spinal cord atrophy on disability worsening in MS. We acquired clinical and MRI data from 90 patients with relapsing-remitting MS and 24 healthy controls (HC). Clinical progression at follow-up (mean 3. Read More

Int J Spine Surg 2021 Feb;14(s4):S1-S4

Consultant Spine Surgeon, South West Neurosurgery Centre, Derriford Hospital, Plymouth PL6 8DH.

We present a unique case with early recurrent myelopathic clinical manifestations following anterior cervical discectomy and fusion; however, he had an eventual diagnosis of multiple sclerosis rather than any residual cord compression on repeat imaging. Read More

CNS Drugs 2021 Apr 13. Epub 2021 Apr 13.

Bristol Myers Squibb, Princeton, NJ, USA.

Background: Patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) experience relapses and sustained disability progression. Since 2004, the number of disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) for MS has grown substantially. As a result, patients, healthcare providers, and insurers are increasingly interested in comparative efficacy and safety evaluations to distinguish between treatment options, but head-to-head studies between DMTs are limited. Read More

Mult Scler Relat Disord 2021 Mar 28;51:102928. Epub 2021 Mar 28.

ILFOMER, Université de Limoges, Limoges, France; HAVAE, EA 6310, Université de Limoges, Limoges, France. Electronic address:

Background: The current coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic makes it difficult to obtain physical therapy in rehabilitation centres, particularly for persons with multiple sclerosis (pwMS), who are a population at high risk, since viral infections may contribute to MS exacerbations and relapses. Active video games could be a way to maintain physical therapy at home as part of the rehabilitation. The aim of this review is to summarise the current best evidence for the effectiveness of home-based active video games on gait and balance, user compliance, feasibility and safety for pwMS. Read More

Mult Scler Relat Disord 2021 Mar 21;51:102917. Epub 2021 Mar 21.

Department of Neurology, University Hospital "12 de Octubre",Madrid, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain; Department of Medicine, Complutense University, Madrid, Spain. Electronic address:

Background: Spinal cord complications associated with coronavirus infectious disease of 2019 (COVID-19) are being widely reported. The purpose of this systematic review was to summarize so far available pieces of evidence documenting de novo novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) mediated spinal cord demyelinating diseases. Indeed, the spinal demyelinating disorders that have been reported in those patients who have suffered from COVID-19 rather than on the people already living with diagnosed or undiagnosed primary demyelinating disorders. Read More

Ther Adv Neurol Disord 2021 26;14:1756286420987941. Epub 2021 Feb 26.

Biogen, Cambridge, MA, USA.

Background: EXTEND (NCT01797965), an open-label extension study, evaluated the safety and efficacy of daclizumab beta in participants with relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS) who had completed the randomized DECIDE study.

Methods: Eligible participants who received either daclizumab beta or interferon beta-1a in DECIDE received daclizumab beta 150 mg subcutaneously every 4 weeks for up to 5 years in EXTEND, followed by 24 weeks of post-dosing follow-up. Safety and tolerability were evaluated, as were clinical efficacy and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Read More

Cureus 2021 Feb 5;13(2):e13161. Epub 2021 Feb 5.

Neurological Surgery, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, USA.

Objective We aimed to assess the impact of surgical intervention on outcome in patients diagnosed with demyelinating disorders and cervical degenerative disease warranting surgical intervention. Methods The records of patients with a diagnosis of a demyelinating disorder of the central nervous system who underwent cervical spine surgery at a single institution from 2016 to 2020 were reviewed. Demyelinating disease included multiple sclerosis (MS), neuromyelitis optica, and transverse myelitis (TM). Read More

J Bodyw Mov Ther 2021 Jan 7;25:41-45. Epub 2020 Nov 7.

Exercise Physiology, University of Canterbury, New Zealand.

Objective: Pilates training has several well-known benefits for people with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). However, its effect on functional balance is unclear. The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of pilates exercises on the functional balance of male patients with MS. Read More

Int J Mol Sci 2021 Feb 25;22(5). Epub 2021 Feb 25.

Department of Neurology, Ulm University, 89081 Ulm, Germany.

Phelan McDermid syndrome (PMcD) is a neurogenetic disease associated with haploinsufficiency of the gene due to a spectrum of anomalies in the terminal region of the long arm of chromosome 22. is the abbreviation for SH3 domain and ankyrin repeat-containing protein, a gene that encodes for proteins of the postsynaptic density (PSD) of excitatory synapses. This PSD is relevant for the induction and plasticity of spine and synapse formation as a basis for learning processes and long-term potentiation. Read More

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021 Feb;118(8)

Department of Comparative Biosciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61802;

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic neurological disease of the central nervous system driven by peripheral immune cell infiltration and glial activation. The pathological hallmark of MS is demyelination, and mounting evidence suggests neuronal damage in gray matter is a major contributor to disease irreversibility. While T cells are found in both gray and white matter of MS tissue, they are typically confined to the white matter of the most commonly used mouse model of MS, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). Read More

Continuum (Minneap Minn) 2021 02;27(1):12-29

Purpose Of Review: This article focuses on clinically relevant teaching points in spinal anatomy and localizing the lesion in myelopathy.

Recent Findings: The principles underlying spinal cord lesion localization are well established, but improvements in MRI and the discovery of pathologic antibodies associated with causes of transverse myelitis distinct from multiple sclerosis, such as aquaporin-4 IgG and myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein IgG, have assisted in diagnosis.

Summary: The spinal cord has a highly organized neuroanatomy of ascending and descending tracts that convey sensory, motor, and autonomic information. Read More

J Neurooncol 2021 Apr 27;152(2):325-332. Epub 2021 Jan 27.

Division of Clinical Neurooncology, Department of Neurology, University Hospital Essen, University Duisburg-Essen, Hufelandstrasse 55, 45147, Essen, Germany.

Introduction: This study aimed to test the diagnostic significance of FET-PET imaging combined with machine learning for the differentiation between multiple sclerosis (MS) and glioma II°-IV°.

Methods: Our database was screened for patients in whom FET-PET imaging was performed for the diagnostic workup of newly diagnosed lesions evident on MRI and suggestive of glioma. Among those, we identified patients with histologically confirmed glioma II°-IV°, and those who later turned out to have MS. Read More

Neurol Sci 2021 Apr 25;42(4):1335-1344. Epub 2021 Jan 25.

Clínica de Esclerosis Múltiple, Hospital Ramos Mejía, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Background: Technological advances and greater availability of magnetic resonance imaging have prompted an increment on incidental and unexpected findings within the central nervous system. The concept of radiologically isolated syndrome characterizes a group of subjects with images suggestive of demyelinating disease in the absence of a clinical episode compatible with multiple sclerosis. Since the description of this entity, many questions have arisen; some have received responses but others remain unanswered. Read More

Nat Rev Neurol 2021 Mar 22;17(3):185-192. Epub 2021 Jan 22.

Department of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Sensory Organs, Centre for Experimental Neurological Therapies (CENTERS), Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy.

Therapies for infiltrative inflammation in multiple sclerosis (MS) have advanced greatly, but neurodegeneration and compartmentalized inflammation remain virtually untargeted as in other diseases of the nervous system. Consequently, many therapies are available for the relapsing-remitting form of MS, but the progressive forms remain essentially untreated. The objective of the International Progressive MS Alliance is to expedite the development of effective therapies for progressive MS through new initiatives that foster innovative thinking and concrete advancements. Read More

Neurosciences (Riyadh) 2020 Oct;25(5):406-411

College of Medicine, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences (KSAU-HS), Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. E-mail:

Patients with isolated neurosarcoidosis (NS) can present with neurological symptoms that mimic other neurologic conditions, such as multiple sclerosis (MS). In this article, we present a case of 25-year-old man with a transverse myelitis. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain and spine showed several, periventricular, infratentorial, and spinal cord white matter lesions. Read More

Cell Mol Life Sci 2021 Mar 11;78(6):2429-2457. Epub 2021 Jan 11.

Theodor Kocher Institute, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is produced by the choroid plexuses within the ventricles of the brain and circulates through the subarachnoid space of the skull and spinal column to provide buoyancy to and maintain fluid homeostasis of the brain and spinal cord. The question of how CSF drains from the subarachnoid space has long puzzled scientists and clinicians. For many decades, it was believed that arachnoid villi or granulations, outcroppings of arachnoid tissue that project into the dural venous sinuses, served as the major outflow route. Read More

Mult Scler 2021 Jan 11:1352458520981300. Epub 2021 Jan 11.

CHU de Caen, MS Expert Centre, Department of Neurology, avenue de la Côte-de-Nacre, Normandy University, Caen, France.

Background: A delayed onset of treatment effect, termed therapeutic lag, may influence the assessment of treatment response in some patient subgroups.

Objectives: The objective of this study is to explore the associations of patient and disease characteristics with therapeutic lag on relapses and disability accumulation.

Methods: Data from MSBase, a multinational multiple sclerosis (MS) registry, and OFSEP, the French MS registry, were used. Read More

Acta Neuropathol Commun 2021 01 6;9(1). Epub 2021 Jan 6.

Department of Physiology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117549, Singapore.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) represent two ends of the same disease spectrum of adult-onset neurodegenerative diseases that affect the motor and cognitive functions, respectively. Multiple common genetic loci such as fused in sarcoma (FUS) have been identified to play a role in ALS and FTD etiology. Current studies indicate that FUS mutations incur gain-of-toxic functions to drive ALS pathogenesis. Read More

Connect Tissue Res 2021 Jan 17:1-11. Epub 2021 Jan 17.

Department of Orthopaedics, Peking University Third Hospital, Beijing, China.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a joint disorder involving cartilage degeneration and subchondral bone sclerosis. The bone-cartilage interface is implicated in OA pathogenesis due to its susceptibility to mechanical and biological factors. The crosstalk between cartilage and the underlying subchondral bone is elevated in OA due to multiple factors, such as increased vascularization, porosity, microcracks and fissures. Read More

Neuroradiol J 2021 Jun 4;34(3):200-204. Epub 2021 Jan 4.

Department of Neurology, Barzilai University Medical Centre, Israel.

Background: Cervical discopathy and demyelinating lesions often co-exist in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). Our study examines the possible association between these two pathologies.

Methods: Medical records and cervical magnetic resonance imaging scans of MS patients with cervical discopathy who were seen at our MS clinic during 2018 were retrospectively reviewed. Read More

Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep 2021 01 3;21(1). Epub 2021 Jan 3.

Department of Neurology, The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, 920 Stanton L. Young Blvd. Suite 2547, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA.

Purpose Of Review: To review the most recent advances and provide a description of the most common autoimmune diseases causing myelitis and selective spine disorders. The ultimate goal of this article is to facilitate the prompt recognition of these diseases.

Recent Findings: The recent discovery of biomarkers such as aquaporin 4 (AQP4) and myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG) antibodies has changed our understanding of autoimmune diseases affecting the spinal cord as well as their treatment and outcomes. Read More

AJNR Am J Neuroradiol 2021 01 31;42(2):389-396. Epub 2020 Dec 31.

From the Division of Neuroradiology, Department of Radiology (C.A.P.F.A., S.R.T., J.S.M.S., L.C., F.G.G., A.V., G.Z.).

Background And Purpose: Little is known about imaging features of spinal cord lesions in mitochondrial disorders. The aim of this research was to assess the frequency, imaging features, and pathogenic variants causing primary mitochondrial disease in children with spinal cord lesions.

Materials And Methods: This retrospective analysis included patients seen at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia between 2000 and 2019 who had a confirmed diagnosis of a primary (genetic-based) mitochondrial disease and available MR imaging of the spine. Read More

Neural Regen Res 2021 Jul;16(7):1359-1368

Pediatric Research Institute, Department of Pediatrics, University of Louisville School of Medicine; Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY, USA.

Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks the myelin sheath in the central nervous system. It is characterized by blood-brain barrier dysfunction throughout the course of multiple sclerosis, followed by the entry of immune cells and activation of local microglia and astrocytes. Glial cells (microglia, astrocytes, and oligodendrocyte lineage cells) are known as the important mediators of neuroinflammation, all of which play major roles in the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis. Read More

Br J Radiol 2021 Jan 1;94(1117):20200812. Epub 2020 Dec 1.

Neuroradiology Department, Neuroscience Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.

An outbreak of corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) began in China in December 2019, and rapidly spread to become a worldwide pandemic. Neurological complications encountered in hospitalized patients include acute arterial ischemic cerebrovascular stroke, cerebral venous thrombosis, critical illness-associated cerebral microbleeds, hypertensive hemorrhagic posterior reversible encephalopathy, meningoencephalitis/flare up of infections, flare up of multiple sclerosis, acute disseminated encephalomyelitis cerebral hemodynamic/hypoxic changes such as watershed ischemic changes and hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, and spine manifestations of Guillain Barre syndrome and viral myelitis. The purpose of our study is to illustrate the different neuroimaging features in critically ill hospitalized COVID-19 positive patients in the State of Qatar. Read More