Research published in Brain used new MRI techniques to display what happens in the brains of individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS) in the early stage of the condition. Scientists stated that this new technique may have the ability to predict the level of disability of an individual in the future.
Multiple sclerosis can cause a variety of symptoms which include vision problems, mobility issues, fatigue, and numbness. MS is not predictable and this varies for every individual. The unpredictability of how the development will arise, both as regards severity and symptoms is one of the main challenges for those affected. The level of uncertainty also extends to the toll used in diagnosing MS patients, the MRI tool, used in following up patients can only detect minor parts of the serious damages caused by MS.
A study was funded by Rosetrees Trust and MS Society, the University College London (UCL) conducted a study which is a combination of advanced MRI techniques to depict microscopic transformations in the MS brain. The team at Queen Square MS center observed 42 people who have MS symptoms and have experienced it in the past three months, compared them to the health volunteers, and discovered changes in concentration of sodium a basic element required for the function of the function and microstructure of the brain.
Importantly, the rate at which the changes occur tally with the subtle signs of disability, such as higher EDSS score and slow walking speed which suggested that the uncertain changes might be a contributing factor to the disability. If the factors can be proven to relate to the buildup of the disability, then they can help in making accurate predictions on how the MS of an individual can affect them in the future, however, there is still ongoing longitudinal research on the 42 respondents.
A neurologist and clinical research associate at the UCL and author of the study, Dr. Sara Collorone, stated that “MRI plays an important role in the diagnosis of MS and monitoring it throughout an individual’s life, which has been the main issue for many decades. However, conventional techniques do not reveal the whole story.
“This development is interesting because the new techniques provide an in-depth solution and perform better than the conventional MRI can do, which enables us to see alterations and damage in brain tissues that we have not seen before. This technique can provide vital details about early damages caused by MS which was only gotten via post mortem studies on brain tissues of people who have advanced MS. It provides an insight on how the MS will progress which makes it a better long-term prognosis for new diagnosis and for greater future certainty. “
The traditional MRI discoveries currently in use cannot show the clinical variability of MS. Presently, white matter issues in the spinal cord and brain are visible as white spots on MRI scans, however, the white spots do not provide enough information compared to the degree or scale of damage, and the study did not depict any correlation between white matter lesions and disability.
Disability in MS is driven both by inflammation and nerve loss, with the latter causing the gradually worsening, irreversible disability seen in progressive forms of MS. The alterations visible using these new techniques are indicative of damage to nerves and may prove to be a very early indication of the likelihood of progressive disease. If this is confirmed in further long-term studies, clinicians could translate that knowledge into more targeted use of treatments in early MS, improving patients’ prognosis. Such understanding could be particularly important if neuroprotective drugs start to emerge – a goal the MS Society’s Stop MS Appeal is striving towards within the next five years.