Publications by authors named "Raquel Mitjana"
Objective: To explore the long-term outcomes of patients with clinically isolated syndromes from the Barcelona cohort.
Methods: We selected patients with a follow-up longer than 10 years to (1) estimate the risks of multiple sclerosis (MS) and disability accumulation according to the baseline number of T2 lesions and to compare treated versus untreated patients and early versus delayed treatment, and (2) to study baseline features of patients with aggressive MS (Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) ⩾6.0 at 10 years).
Objective: To investigate the effect of menarche, pregnancies, and breastfeeding on the risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS) and disability accrual using a multivariate approach based on a large prospective cohort of patients with clinically isolated syndrome (CIS).
Methods: A cross-sectional survey of the reproductive information of female participants in a CIS cohort was performed. We examined the relationship of age at menarche with the risk of clinically definite MS (CDMS), McDonald 2010 MS, and Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) 3.
The presence of oligoclonal bands in clinically isolated syndromes is an independent risk factor for developing multiple sclerosis and has been largely excluded from the more recent multiple sclerosis diagnostic criteria. Therefore, our objective was to explore the value of oligoclonal bands in the context of the 2010 McDonald criteria, especially in patients fulfilling exclusively dissemination in space at baseline. For this purpose, we selected 566 patients from a clinically isolated syndrome inception cohort who had IgG oligoclonal bands determination and sufficient data on baseline brain MRI to assess dissemination in space and time.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: To assess the contributions of cortico-juxtacortical and corpus callosum lesions to multiple sclerosis diagnosis and to compare the value of ≥1 vs ≥3 periventricular lesions in clinically isolated syndromes (CIS).
Methods: Step 1: We evaluated lesion topography classifications in 657 patients with CIS with stepwise Cox proportional hazards regression models considering second attack as the outcome. Step 2: We established 2 dissemination in space (DIS) versions according to the periventricular lesion cutoffs of ≥1 and ≥3 and assessed their performance at 10 years with second attack as the outcome, first individually and then combined with dissemination in time (DIT) in all cases (n = 326), by age, and by CIS topography.
Background: Brain atrophy in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients is present since the very early stages of the disease and it has been related to long-term disability.
Objective: To estimate brain volume (BV) at 15 years after a clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) and to evaluate its relationship with disease outcomes.
Methods: From a prospective cohort including patients presenting with a CIS, 54 patients with a brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) performed 15 years after CIS were included.
Objective: To study the contribution of the symptomatic lesion in establishing multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis and prognosis.
Methods: We performed an observational study based on a prospective clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) cohort of 1,107 patients recruited for clinical and brain MRI follow-up from 1995 to 2014. Eligible patients (n = 954) were divided into 4 groups according to baseline MRI: patients with a normal MRI (n = 290); patients with a single asymptomatic lesion (n = 18); patients with a single cord/brainstem symptomatic lesion (n = 35); and patients with more than 1 lesion (n = 611).
Natural history studies have identified factors that predict evolution to multiple sclerosis or risk of disability accumulation over time. Although these studies are based on large multicentre cohorts with long follow-ups, they have limitations such as lack of standardized protocols, a retrospective data collection or lack of a systematic magnetic resonance imaging acquisition and analysis protocol, often resulting in failure to take magnetic resonance and oligoclonal bands into account as joint covariates in the prediction models. To overcome some of these limitations, the aim of our study was to identify and stratify baseline demographic, clinical, radiological and biological characteristics that might predict multiple sclerosis development and disability accumulation using a multivariate approach based on a large prospective cohort of patients with clinically isolated syndromes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Several autoimmune diseases (ADs) can mimic multiple sclerosis (MS). For this reason, testing for auto-antibodies (auto-Abs) is often included in the diagnostic work-up of patients with a clinically isolated syndrome (CIS).
Objective: The purpose was to study how useful it was to systematically determine antinuclear-antibodies, anti-SSA and anti-SSB in a non-selected cohort of CIS patients, regarding the identification of other ADs that could represent an alternative diagnosis.
Background: Non-enhancing black holes (neBHs) are more common in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients with longer disease durations and progressive disease subtypes.
Objective: Our aim was to analyse the added value of neBHs in patients with clinically isolated syndromes (CISs) for predicting conversion to clinically definite MS (CDMS).
Methods: Patients were classified based on the presence or absence of neBHs and on the number of Barkhof-Tintoré (B-T) criteria fulfilled.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates patients with MRI findings suggestive of multiple sclerosis (MS) but no prior neurological symptoms.
- A total of 11 patients were followed over an average of 2.9 years, showing radiological progression and some converting to MS.
- Findings suggest that identifying these incidental MRI lesions may help identify individuals at higher risk for developing MS in the future.