A SPINAL-CORD MRI STUDY OF BENIGN AND SECONDARY PROGRESSIVE MULTIPLE-SCLEROSIS

This study was performed to achieve a better definition of the nature of the disability in multiple sclerosis (MS), Axial spinal cord magnet ic resonance imaging (MRI) at C5 was obtained in 15 patients with beni gn MS, 17 patients with secondary progressive MS and 10 healthy contro ls. Patients with secondary progressive MS had smaller spinal cord cro ss-sectional area (P = 0.01) and transverse diameter (P = 0.006) than patients with benign MS. The degree of disability was inversely correl ated with both the cross-sectional area (r = -0.6, P = 0.0018) and tra nsverse diameter (r = -0.5, P = 0.0032) of the cord, Spinal cord atrop hy was found in 7 (41%) patients with secondary progressive MS and in 2 (13%) with benign MS. These findings suggest that destructive pathol ogy within MS lesions might play a relevant role in the development of disability in MS.