Margarida Maia, PhD,  science writer—

The presence of certain self-reactive antibodies called antinuclear antibodies (ANAs) in the blood is associated with worse disability and more severe relapses in people with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD), according to a study from China. “Our results suggest that ANA seems to be more associated with severe disease…

Long-term use of the approved therapy Soliris (eculizumab) safely and effectively prevents relapses in the real world in people with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) and antibodies against the AQP4 protein. That’s according to two-year interim data from an observational study in Japan, where Soliris was approved in…

The presence of lesions in the brain’s middle medulla, a control center for breathing, increases the likelihood of acute respiratory failure in people with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD), a study suggests. While middle medullary lesions on MRI were the key predictor of acute respiratory failure in patients with…

Having optic neuritis — inflammation of the nerves that relay information between the eyes and the brain — as a first symptom of neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) is one of the factors that predict visual disability in up to five years, according to a study in China. Other…

Achieving nine goals could help address inequities with access to properly diagnosing and treating neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD), a Massachusetts physician maintains. The goals were proposed by Farrah Mateen, MD, PhD, of the Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston as a personal viewpoint in the Multiple Sclerosis Journal under…

Uplizna (inebilizumab) reduces the number and size of subclinical lesions — those that cause no apparent symptoms — in the spinal cord of people with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) about six months after the start of treatment. That’s according to a new analysis from the Phase…

Testing positive for self-reactive antibodies causing both neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) and myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibody disease (MOGAD) — two related autoimmune disorders — is extremely rare, but it appears to manifest more as NMOSD, a study in India suggests. So-called double positivity was found in three of…

Starting treatment with off-label rituximab soon after neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) symptoms begin may prevent long-term disability worsening, a South Korean study suggests. This approach was particularly true for patients who were younger than 50, female, and for those with a severe level of disability before starting rituximab,…

Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) may begin to manifest as uncontrollable nausea, vomiting, or hiccups — a condition referred to as area postrema syndrome (APS) — as described in a report of four patients in China. Because these symptoms can overlap with those of other diseases, their occurrence…

Eye scans of people with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) revealed they may have a thicker retina — the eye’s light-detector — and more blood vessels than people with myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibody disease (MOGAD). That’s according to a study in which researchers used two noninvasive imaging techniques,…