Characterization of children with early onset pediatric multiple sclerosis


Kauth F., Bertolini A., Wendel E., Koukou G., El Naggar I., Chung J., ...Daha Fazla

EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF PAEDIATRIC NEUROLOGY, cilt.54, ss.113-120, 2025 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 54
  • Basım Tarihi: 2025
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1016/j.ejpn.2025.01.006
  • Dergi Adı: EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF PAEDIATRIC NEUROLOGY
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, EMBASE, MEDLINE
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.113-120
  • Hacettepe Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

Background: Early onset pediatric multiple sclerosis (EOPMS) provides an early window of opportunity to understand the mechanisms leading to MS. Objective: To investigate clinical, laboratory and imaging differences between children with early onset pediatric MS (<11 years, EOPMS) and late onset pediatric MS (>= 11 years, LOPMS). Methods: Mostly prospectively collected data of children with MS including clinical presentation, MRI at onset, time to second relapse, relapse rate, treatment history, and CSF markers were eligible. Results: In total 274 children were included, n = 53 children with EOPMS and n = 221 children with LOPMS. In children with EOPMS both sexes were equally affected, while in LOPMS the female sex was more prevalent (p < 0.001). Presence of additional oligoclonal bands (OCBs) in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) was comparable in both age groups (92.3 % vs 89.5 %). Children with EOPMS had more relapses in the first 2 years (p = 0.004). Children with LOPMS had significantly more spinal lesions (p = 0.001). Presence of a prior EBV infection tested in a subset of children with EOPMS (n = 34) was only detected in 27/34 (79 %). Conclusion: Our findings suggest that both groups share important similarities but also important differences such as an increased relapse rate and a higher amount of infratentorial lesions in EOPMS. Furthermore, our results allude to a prior EBV-infection possibly not being an indispensable requirement for the development of MS in children with EOPMS.