Wise Young
11-30-2002, 07:04 AM
• (2002). MRI predictors of early conversion to clinically definite MS in the CHAMPS placebo group. Neurology 59:998-1005. Summary: OBJECTIVE: To assess the ability of baseline MRI characteristics to predict the early development of clinically definite MS (CDMS) and combined CDMS/MRI outcomes in 190 patients with a positive MRI at the time of their first demyelinating event. METHODS: Based on individual and sets of baseline MRI characteristics, the authors evaluated the percentage of patients meeting outcomes of CDMS and various combined CDMS/MRI outcomes by 18 months. They also optimized a cutpoint for dichotomizing each baseline MRI characteristic and evaluated these variables using logistic regression to determine which MRI characteristics best predicted CDMS by 18 months. RESULTS: The presence of two or more gadolinium-enhancing lesions better predicted the development of CDMS and combined CDMS/MRI outcomes by 18 months than any other individual MRI characteristic or set of MRI characteristics. Among patients with two or more gadolinium-enhancing lesions, 52% developed CDMS compared with 24% of patients with fewer than two lesions. For those meeting the criteria of Barkhof et al., 32% of patients developed CDMS compared with 16% of those not meeting these criteria. Irrespective of individual or sets of criteria, however, the majority of patients developed either CDMS or demonstrated disease activity on brain MRI by 18 months. CONCLUSIONS: For patients with positive MRI at the time of their initial neurologic event, both gadolinium-enhancing lesions and the Barkhof criteria are predictors for development of CDMS over a short interval. However, these results, based on a combined CDMS/MRI outcome, suggest that the majority of these patients are already in the earliest stages of MS, regardless of whether any further MRI criteria are met.
Wise Young
11-30-2002, 07:05 AM
• (2002). Predictors of short-term disease activity following a first clinical demyelinating event analysis of the CHAMPS placebo group. Mult Scler 8:405-9. Summary: We evaluated 190 patients in the placebo group of the CHAMPS trial in order to assess factors associated with short-term dinical and brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) outcomes in patients with a first dinical demyelinating event involving the optic nerve, spinal cord, or brainstem/cerebellum, and subdinical demyelination on brain MRI. The two study outcomes were 1) development of clinically definite multiple sclerosis (CDMS) and 2) development of CDMS or two or more new or enlarging brain MRI T2 lesions. The presence of gadolinium (Gd)-enhancing lesions on the baseline scan was the only MRI characteristic associated with a higher risk of both the clinical and combined outcomes (p = 0.003 and < 0.001, respectively). The only demographic or clinical characteristic associated with an increased risk of these outcomes was younger age [p < 0.001 for both outcomes). The lowest risk subgroups we could define had a 30% risk of CDMS and a 65% risk of the combined clinical/MRI outcome. Our results indicate that all patients presenting with a first demyelinating event who also have brain MRI evidence of subclinical demyelination have at least a moderate risk of short-term disease activity. This finding provides support for initiating disease-modifying therapy at the time of the first demyelinating event in patients meetng the CHAMPS enrollment criteria.
Wise Young
11-30-2002, 07:08 AM
• (2002). Baseline MRI characteristics of patients at high risk for multiple sclerosis: results from the CHAMPS trial. Controlled High-Risk Subjects Avonex Multiple Sclerosis Prevention Study. Mult Scler 8:330-8. Summary: The baseline MRI studies from the Controlled High-Risk Subjects Avonex Multiple Sclerosis Prevention Study (CHAMPS) trial, a randomized, longitudinal, double-blind trial of 383 patients with a first acute clinical demyelinating event and evidence of prior subclinical demyelination on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain, provides a large MRI database for patients likely in the earliest stages of multiple sclerosis (MS). High-resolution baseline MRIs revealed a median of 13 T2 lesions (maximum = 103 lesions) and 2.05 cm3 of T2 lesion volume (maximum 35.04 cm3), with 30% of patients having one or more enhancing lesions despite receiving a standardized high-dose course of intravenous corticosteroids. Periventricular, discrete, and juxtacortical T2 lesions were present in 99%, 92% and 67% of the patients, respectively. Large (> 6 mm), T1-hypointense, infratentorial, and corpus callosum lesions were present in 69%, 50%, 55% and 58%, respectively. Clinical presentation groups showed differences in T2 lesion volume, and enhancing lesion number and volume. At baseline, 97%, 81% and 72% of the patients met 'Paty', 'Fazekas', and 'Barkhof' research criteria for MS, respectively, with the percentages similar according to clinical presentation group. These results support and extend those of smaller and/or retrospective series, which have shown substantial subclinical injury, based on brain MRI, at the earliest identifiable stages of disease.