New MRI technique could improve diagnosis and treatment of multiple sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis is a disease of the central nervous system that manifests itself in changes (lesions) primarily in the brain. As yet, there is no cure for MS, but it can be effectively treated. Early diagnosis is critical to the prognosis, with highly detailed imaging techniques playing a major role. Although conventional MRI can detect brain lesions, scientists are researching methods to detect the changes at an earlier microscopic or biochemical stage. The method known as proton MR spectroscopy has been identified as a promising tool for this purpose.

Using this technique, the research group led by Eva Niess (formerly Heckova) and Wolfgang Bogner from MedUni Vienna's Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-guided Therapy, working with scientists from MedUni Vienna's Department of Neurology, went one step further in their recently published study. The team used MR spectroscopy with a 7-tesla magnet to compare the neurochemical changes in the brains of 65 MS patients with those of 20 healthy controls. This particularly powerful imaging tool was co-developed by MedUni Vienna researchers and has been used for scientific studies, e.g., of the brain, at MedUni Vienna's Center of Excellence for High-Field MR since it was commissioned in 2008.

"If the results are confirmed in further studies, this new neuroimaging technique could become a standard imaging tool for initial diagnosis and for monitoring disease activity and treatment in MS patients," says Wolfgang Bogner, looking to the future. The method is currently only available on the only 7-Tesla MRI scanner in Austria at MedUni Vienna and only for research purposes. However, the scientific team led by Eva Niess and Wolfgang Bogner is working on refining the new method for use in routine clinical MRI scanners.