Early therapy initiation is crucial in chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy: prospective multimodal data from the German INHIBIT registry.

Background: Diagnosing chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) can be challenging, leading to delays in initiating therapy. As disability in CIDP is mainly dependent on axonal damage, the impact of delayed immunotherapy remains unclear. We multimodally investigated the clinical outcomes of patients with early CIDP regarding different treatment strategies and time points.

Assessing axonal pathology and disease progression in chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy using corneal confocal microscopy.

Objective: Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy (CIDP) is an autoimmune neuropathy characterized by progressive or relapsing-remitting weakness and sensory deficits. This study aims to evaluate the utility of corneal confocal microscopy (CCM) in diagnosing and monitoring CIDP.

Methods: We analysed 100 CIDP patients and 31 healthy controls using CCM to measure corneal nerve fiber density (CNFD), length (CNFL), and branch density (CNBD).

Aseptic meningitis with recurrent headache episodes, vomiting, and central fever as first manifestation of isolated neurosarcoidosis: a case report.

Background: Neurosarcoidosis is a rare entity, usually within the context of systematic sarcoidosis. Isolated neurosarcoidosis and especially a manifestation with pachymeningitis is a notable rarity.

Case Report: A 26-year-old patient presented to the emergency department with acute onset, recurrent episodes of occipital headaches spreading over the whole cranium and vomiting without food consumption, for three days.

Quality of life and tolerability of B-cell directed therapy of multiple sclerosis with ofatumumab in a patient-centered real-world observational study.

Introduction: Ofatumumab (Kesimpta) is a subcutaneous CD20-targeting antibody approved in Germany in 2021 for the treatment of relapsing multiple sclerosis (RMS). After careful instruction, patients can administer the treatment themselves. We previously reported data of 101 patients (Klimas et al.

Experimental setup for thermal measurements at the nanoscale using a SThM probe with niobium nitride thermometer.

Scanning Thermal Microscopy (SThM) has become an important measurement technique for characterizing the thermal properties of materials at the nanometer scale. This technique requires a SThM probe that combines an Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) probe and a very sensitive resistive thermometer; the thermometer being located at the apex of the probe tip allows for the mapping of temperature or thermal properties of nanostructured materials with very high spatial resolution. The high interest of the SThM technique in the field of thermal nanoscience currently suffers from a low temperature sensitivity despite its high spatial resolution.

The multiple roles of nerve biopsy in the diagnosis and prognosis of suspected immune neuropathies.

Introduction: The value of a sural nerve biopsy for the diagnosis of chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy (CIDP) is controversial. Evidence-based recommendations for its implementation are lacking. We investigated factors leading to biopsy and analyzed biopsy outcomes and consequences, assessed the predictability of biopsy outcomes through clinical parameters to avoid unnecessary biopsies, and compared results with electrophysiological and clinical severity to determine their prognostic value.

Real-world evidence and patient preference for subcutaneous intravenous natalizumab in the treatment of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis - initial results from the observational SISTER study.

Background: The consideration of patient preference for a certain drug route of administration (RoA) plays an important role in promoting patient adherence in chronic diseases. Natalizumab is an established treatment for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) and can be administered as intravenous (IV) infusion or subcutaneous (SC) injection developed to enable a shorter and easier administration IV RoA.

Study Objectives: Primary objective is to compare patients' preference for RoA and satisfaction with SC IV natalizumab at baseline and subsequent visits up to 12 months.

Morphological Differentiation of Corneal Inflammatory Cells.

Purpose: Corneal confocal microscopy is a noninvasive imaging technique to analyze corneal nerve fibers and corneal inflammatory cells (CICs). The amount of CICs is a potential biomarker of disease activity in chronic autoinflammatory diseases. To date, there are no standardized criteria for the morphological characterization of CICs.

Small fibre integrity and axonal pathology in the rat model of experimental autoimmune neuritis.

Experimental autoimmune neuritis is a common animal model for acute human immune-mediated polyneuropathies. Although already established in 1955, a number of pathophysiological mechanisms remain unknown. In this study, we extensively characterize experimental autoimmune neuritis progression in Lewis rats, including new insights into the integrity of small nerve fibres, neuropathic pain and macrophage activation.

Comparative analysis of albumin quotient and total CSF protein in immune-mediated neuropathies: a multicenter study on diagnostic implications.

Introduction: Blood-cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) barrier dysfunction is pivotal for diagnosing immune-mediated neuropathies, especially in spinal nerve root inflammation. Typically, either total CSF protein or the CSF to serum albumin ratio (Q) is measured. Total CSF protein measurements have limitations, notably its fixed reference value regardless of age, in contrast to the age-dependent reference for Q.

Association of the neonatal Fc receptor promoter variable number of tandem repeat polymorphism with immunoglobulin response in patients with chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy.

Background And Purpose: Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) is an autoimmune disease with humoral and cellular autoimmunity causing demyelination of peripheral nerves, commonly treated with intravenous immunoglobulins (IVIg). The neonatal Fc receptor (FcRn), encoded by the FCGRT gene, prevents the degradation of immunoglobulin G (IgG) by recycling circulating IgG. A variable number of tandem repeat (VNTR) polymorphism in the promoter region of the FCGRT gene is associated with different expression levels of mRNA and protein.

High-resolution nerve ultrasound and corneal confocal microscopy in taxane-induced polyneuropathy.

Background And Purpose: The role of high-resolution nerve ultrasound (HRUS) and corneal confocal microscopy (CCM) in the early detection of taxane-induced polyneuropathy (TIPN) is unclear. The present prospective longitudinal controlled observational pilot study estimates the role of HRUS and CCM in the early diagnosis of TIPN in breast cancer patients.

Methods: Fifteen breast cancer patients receiving paclitaxel and 15 healthy age matched controls were included.

Monocrystalline diamond detector for online monitoring during synchrotron microbeam radiotherapy.

Microbeam radiation therapy (MRT) is a radiotherapy technique combining spatial fractionation of the dose distribution on a micrometric scale, X-rays in the 50-500 keV range and dose rates up to 16 × 10 Gy s. Nowadays, in vivo dosimetry remains a challenge due to the ultra-high radiation fluxes involved and the need for high-spatial-resolution detectors. The aim here was to develop a striped diamond portal detector enabling online microbeam monitoring during synchrotron MRT treatments.

Factors associated with depressive mood at the onset of multiple sclerosis - an analysis of 781 patients of the German NationMS cohort.

Background: Depression has a major impact on the disease burden of multiple sclerosis (MS). Analyses of overlapping MS and depression risk factors [smoking, vitamin D (25-OH-VD) and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection] and sex, age, disease characteristics and neuroimaging features associated with depressive symptoms in early MS are scarce.

Objectives: To assess an association of MS risk factors with depressive symptoms within the German NationMS cohort.

Serum neurofilament light chain does not detect self-reported treatment-related fluctuations in chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy.

Introduction: Serum neurofilament light chain (sNfL) is a marker for axonal degeneration. Patients with chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy (CIDP) often report a fluctuation of symptoms throughout one treatment cycle with intravenous immunoglobulins (IVIG). The aim of this study was to determine whether sNfL is suitable to quantify patient-reported symptom fluctuations.