Characterizing 1-year development of cervical cord atrophy across different MS phenotypes: A voxel-wise, multicentre analysis

Paola Valsasina, Claudio Gobbi, Chiara Zecca, Alex Rovira, Jaume Sastre-Garriga, Hugh Kearney, Marios Yiannakas, Lucy Matthews, Jacqueline Palace, Antonio Gallo, Alvino Bisecco, Achim Gass, Philipp Eisele, Massimo Filippi, Maria A. Rocca, Frederik Barkhof, Olga Ciccarelli, Nicola de Stefano, Christian Enzinger, Claudio GasperiniLudwig Kappos, Hugo Vrenken, Tarek Yousry

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

3 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Background: Spatio-temporal evolution of cord atrophy in multiple sclerosis (MS) has not been investigated yet. Objective: To evaluate voxel-wise distribution and 1-year changes of cervical cord atrophy in a multicentre MS cohort. Methods: Baseline and 1-year 3D T1-weighted cervical cord scans and clinical evaluations of 54 healthy controls (HC) and 113 MS patients (14 clinically isolated syndromes (CIS), 77 relapsing-remitting (RR), 22 progressive (P)) were used to investigate voxel-wise cord volume loss in patients versus HC, 1-year volume changes and clinical correlations (SPM12). Results: MS patients exhibited baseline cord atrophy versus HC at anterior and posterior/lateral C1/C2 and C4–C6 (p < 0.05, corrected). While CIS patients showed baseline volume increase at C4 versus HC (p < 0.001, uncorrected), RRMS exhibited posterior/lateral C1/C2 atrophy versus CIS, and PMS showed widespread cord atrophy versus RRMS (p < 0.05, corrected). At 1 year, 13 patients had clinically worsened. Cord atrophy progressed in MS, driven by RRMS, at posterior/lateral C2 and C3–C6 (p < 0.05, corrected). CIS patients showed no volume changes, while PMS showed circumscribed atrophy progression. Baseline cord atrophy at posterior/lateral C1/C2 and C3–C6 correlated with concomitant and 1-year disability (r = −0.40/–0.62, p < 0.05, corrected). Conclusions: Voxel-wise analysis characterized spinal cord neurodegeneration over 1 year across MS phenotypes and helped to explain baseline and 1-year disability.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)885-899
JournalMULTIPLE SCLEROSIS JOURNAL
Volume28
Issue number6
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 May 2022

Cite this