BACKGROUND Optimal patient selection would improve the risk-benefit ratio of natalizumab treatment for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RR MS). Clinical features of subjects responding to natalizumab have not been univocally recognized. METHODS Longitudinal data on RR MS patients treated with natalizumab in Liguria, Italy are reported. Predictors of relapse occurrence and disability im...

BACKGROUND Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic autoimmune demyelinating disease characterized by inflammation of white matter in the central nervous system. It has been indicated that this inflammation causes increased levels of proinflammatory cytokines. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate if there is a possible association between inflammatory markers and the Expanded Disability Status Scale (ED...

BACKGROUND The uncertainty about long-term effects of childbirth presents MS patients with dilemmas. METHODS Based on clinical data of 330 female MS patients, the long-term effects of childbirth were analysed, using a cross-sectional study design. Four groups of patients were distinguished: (1) without children (n = 80), (2) with children born before MS onset (n = 170), (3) with children born...

OBJECTIVE In multiple sclerosis (MS), the aim of therapies is to prevent the accumulation of irreversible disability. This is difficult to assess given the short time course of clinical trials. MRI markers and relapses are often used as surrogate of disability in MS studies, but their validity remains controversial. We sought to validate, at the individual patient level, MRI lesions and relapse...

BACKGROUND Impaired quality of life (QOL) is an issue considered in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). There are limited studies evaluated poor sleep and impaired QOL in these cases. The aim of this study was to evaluate quality of sleep and poor sleep in Iranian patients with MS and the relationship between Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) score and QOL subscales. METHODS One-hundre...

The association between clinical outcomes and abnormal susceptibility-weighted imaging (SWI)-filtered phase, indicative of increased iron content, as well as atrophy, was investigated in the subcortical deep-gray matter (SDGM) of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. 149 relapsing-remitting (RR) and 61 secondary-progressive (SP) MS patients underwent SWI on a 3T scanner. Mean phase of the abnormal ...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the outcomes of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) who were treated with natalizumab in Kuwait. MATERIALS AND METHODS A retrospective study using the MS registry to identify patients who were treated with natalizumab was conducted. Patients' demographics, clinical characteristics and treatment parameters were collected at baseline and last follow-up visit. Primary out...

BACKGROUND Responsiveness, defined as the ability to detect a meaningful change, is a core psychometric property of an instrument measuring quality of life (QoL) rarely reported in multiple sclerosis (MS) studies. OBJECTIVE To assess the responsiveness of the Multiple Sclerosis International Quality of Life (MusiQoL) questionnaire to change in disability over 24 months, defined by change in t...

OBJECTIVE To examine the association between optimal adherence to the first-generation injectable immunomodulatory drugs (IMDs) for multiple sclerosis (MS) and subsequent disability accumulation. METHODS We accessed prospectively collected linked clinical and administrative health data from British Columbia, Canada. Subjects with MS treated with a first-generation injectable IMD at an MS clin...

BACKGROUND To improve the consistency of standardized Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) assessments, an electronic data capture tool and analysis tool was developed, Neurostatus e-Scoring (NESC). This tool allows real-time feedback by comparing entries with established scoring rules. OBJECTIVE To test whether using NESC reduces inconsistencies as compared to the paper-and-pencil version...