The presence of spinal cord lesions — alone or with brain lesions — on MRI scans was associated with a higher risk of clinical relapse for multiple sclerosis (MS) patients over those with just brain lesions, according to a recent study. Spinal and brain lesions together were also predictive of disability progression.
The findings support the routine use of spinal cord MRI for monitoring patients and making therapeutic choices, the researchers said.
“Monitoring MS with spinal cord MRI may allow a more accurate risk stratification and individual treatment optimization,” they wrote in “The added value of spinal cord lesions to disability accrual in multiple sclerosis” which was published in the Journal of Neurology.
