[Axonopathy in the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis, peripheral diffuse and local motor neuropathies and motor neuron disease].

Two hundreds and seventy-six patients including 43 patients with multiple sclerosis, 24 - with acute inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (AIDP), 144 - with chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP), 27 - with motor multifocal neuropathy (MMN), 38 - with lateral amyotrophic sclerosis (LAS) have been examined. Symptoms of axonal degeneration, manifested in denervation phenomena in both clinical and instrumental studies (electromyography, transcranial magnetic stimulation, MRT), were revealed in all groups of patients. The formation of excitation conduction blocks is an universal pathophysiological mechanism of the axonopathy development in AIDP, CIDP, MMN and LAS.

[Differential diagnosis of multifocal motor neuropathy and related diseases].

Multifocal motor neuropathy (MMN) is a rare disease of the peripheral nervous system pathogenetically related to local demyelinization and formation of excitation conduction blocks. MMN affect only those nerves and their segments that comprise excitation conduction blocks. Such blocks have a persistent character and show a mosaic pattern over motor fibres which accounts for the specific clinical picture of MMN.