Disease progression

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…

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…

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…

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,…

Brain and spinal cord lesions resolve less often in children with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) than with myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibody disease (MOGAD), a related disorder, according to a small study. No significant differences in resolving lesions were seen between children with NMOSD and those with multiple…

When you’re newly diagnosed with a rare disease, you have no idea what you’ll need to endure for the rest of your life. The shock of the diagnosis takes up all your energy, and you’re forced to live in the moment. There isn’t time to think about your future.

Out of four markers of nervous system cell injury, blood levels of neurofilament light chain (NfL) were found to best predict disability worsening in people with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD), a study showed. Measures of blood NfL levels at the time of an NMOSD attack were the only ones…

A small subset of people with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) do not accumulate significant functional disability in the 15 years following symptom onset, according to a recent study. Called benign NMOSD, these patients were more likely to be Caucasian, less likely to have spinal cord involvement at disease…

High-efficacy treatments for neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) are associated with significant reductions in hospitalizations, relapses, and MRI lesions relative to traditional therapies, according to a recent study. The findings, which were published in the Journal of Neurology, were discussed in an oral presentation at the American…