The borderland of neuromyelitis optica.

Journal article

Neuromyelitis optica (NMO), also known as Devic's disease, is an emerging clinical and pathological entity originally thought to be a variant of multiple sclerosis. Characterised by episodes of demyelination confined to the optic nerve and spinal cord, the discovery in such patients of antibodies to the aquaporin-4 channel has been largely responsible for defining the phenotype to date. Recently it has become clear that there is a borderland where there are patients with optic neuritis-only and myelitis-only forms of the disease, and these may be seronegative in the early phase. We describe two cases of optic neuritis-only NMO, and explore the current understanding of the diagnosis and spectrum of NMO disorders.

Authors: Matthews, L; Baig, F; Palace, J; Turner, M

• Journal: Practical neurology
• Volume: 9
• Issue: 6
• Pages: 335-340
• Publication date: 2009-12-01
• DOI: 10.1136/jnnp.2009.193888
• EISSN: 1474-7766
• ISSN: 1474-7758
• Language: English
• Keywords: Humans; Neuromyelitis Optica; Female; Antibodies, Antinuclear; Methylprednisolone; Aquaporin 4; Neuroprotective Agents; Adult; History, 19th Century; History, 20th Century