Multimodal MRI study on the relation between WM integrity and connected GM atrophy and its effect on disability in early multiple sclerosis.

Background: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is characterized by pathology in white matter (WM) and atrophy of grey matter (GM), but it remains unclear how these processes are related, or how they influence clinical progression.

Objective: To study the spatial and temporal relationship between GM atrophy and damage in connected WM in relapsing-remitting (RR) MS in relation to clinical progression.

Methods: Healthy control (HC) and early RRMS subjects visited our center twice with a 1-year interval for MRI and clinical examinations, including the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) and Multiple Sclerosis Functional Composite (MSFC) scores.

Upper cervical cord atrophy is independent of cervical cord lesion volume in early multiple sclerosis: A two-year longitudinal study.

Background: Upper cervical cord atrophy and lesions have been shown to be associated with disease and disability progression already in early relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). However, their longitudinal relationship remains unclear.

Objective: To investigate the cross-sectional and longitudinal relation between focal T2 cervical cord lesion volume (CCLV) and regional and global mean upper cervical cord area (UCCA), and their relations with disability.

Relationship Between White Matter Lesions and Gray Matter Atrophy in Multiple Sclerosis: A Systematic Review.

Background And Objectives: There is currently no consensus about the extent of gray matter (GM) atrophy that can be attributed to secondary changes after white matter (WM) lesions or the temporal and spatial relationships between the 2 phenomena. Elucidating this interplay will broaden the understanding of the combined inflammatory and neurodegenerative pathophysiology of multiple sclerosis (MS), and separating atrophic changes due to primary and secondary neurodegenerative mechanisms will then be pivotal to properly evaluate treatment effects, especially if these treatments target the different processes individually. To untangle these complex pathologic mechanisms, this systematic review provides an essential first step: an objective and comprehensive overview of the existing in vivo knowledge of the relationship between brain WM lesions and GM atrophy in patients diagnosed with MS.

Damage in the Thalamocortical Tracts is Associated With Subsequent Thalamus Atrophy in Early Multiple Sclerosis.

In early multiple sclerosis (MS), thalamus atrophy and decreased integrity of the thalamocortical white matter (WM) tracts have been observed. To investigate the temporal association between thalamus volume and WM damage in the thalamocortical tract in subjects with early MS. At two time points, 72 subjects with early MS underwent T1, FLAIR and diffusion tensor imaging.