Effect of dose and frequency of interferon beta-1a administration on clinical and magnetic resonance imaging parameters in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis.

There is still debate over the optimal dosage, frequency and route of administration of interferon (IFN) beta in multiple sclerosis (MS). A prospective, non-randomized, comparative study was performed to evaluate differences in magnetic resonance imaging and clinical outcomes of two IFN beta-1a preparations (30mcg intramuscular [im] once-weekly [qw], AVO; and 22 mcg subcutaneous [sc] three-times-weekly [tiw]; R22). Relapsing-remitting MS patients on one of the two IFN preparations (AVO, n=47; R22, n=48) were assessed at baseline and after 6 months of further treatment.

Imaging brain damage in first-degree relatives of sporadic and familial multiple sclerosis.

Objective: Our objective was to assess brain damage in first-degree relatives of patients with sporadic and familial multiple sclerosis (MS).

Methods: Asymptomatic first-degree relatives of sporadic (sMS, n = 152) and familial MS (fMS, n = 88) and healthy volunteers (NC, n = 56) underwent brain MRI and magnetization transfer (MT) imaging on a mobile MR scan. On MR examinations, we visually assessed white matter (WM) lesions and quantified WM lesion volumes, brain volumes, and MT ratio (MTr) in lesions and normal-appearing WM (NAWM).