Magnetization transfer histogram analysis of monosymptomatic episodes of neurologic dysfunction: Preliminary findings

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Patients presenting with a monosymptomatic episode of neurologic dysfunction (MEND) have a high probability of developing mult iple sclerosis (MS). Our study was designed to determine whether magnetizat ion transfer (MT) histogram analysis could predict the development of MS fo r a cohort of patients presenting with a MEND. METHODS: Eleven patients with a MEND and 21 age-matched control volunteers underwent MR imaging, Six patients underwent serial MR. examinations. MT ra tio histogram peak height (MTRHPH) and the location of the MT ratio histogr am peak (LOC MTRHP) were determined for patients and control volunteers. T2 lesion volume was also calculated. Patients were clinically followed up fo r 587 +/- 308 days to determine or rule out the development of MS. RESULTS: Three patients went on to develop MS. There was no statistically s ignificant difference in the MTRHPH (P = .65) and the LOC MTRHP (P = .71) b etween patients and control volunteers. For those patients who underwent mu ltiple examinations, no statistically significant differences in the MTRHPH (P = .64), LOC MTRHP (P = .58), and T2 lesion volume (P = .47) were seen. There were no statistically significant correlations between any of the par ameters studied. CONCLUSION: We found no difference in MT histogram parameters among control volunteers, patients with a MEND without MS,:and patients with a MEND who went on to a diagnosis of MS. Our preliminary findings suggest that there m ay not be a substrate of disease in the normal-appearing white matter that is predictive of the development of MS.