Grey matter atrophy in patients with benign multiple sclerosis

Abstract

Background: Brain atrophy appears during the progression of multiple sclerosis (MS) and is associated with the disability caused by the disease. Methods: We investigated global and regional grey matter (GM) and white matter (WM) volumes, WM lesion load, and corpus callosum index (CCI), in benign relapsing-remitting MS (BRRMS, n = 35) with and without any treatment and compared those to aggressive relapsing-remitting MS (ARRMS, n = 46). Structures were analyzed by using an automated MRI quantification tool (cNeuro®). Results: The total brain and cerebral WM volumes were larger in BRRMS than in ARRMS (p =.014, p =.017 respectively). In BRRMS, total brain volumes, regional GM volumes, and CCI were found similar whether or not disease-modifying treatment (DMT) was used. The total (p =.033), as well as subcortical (p =.046) and deep WM (p =.041) lesion load volumes were larger in BRRMS patients without DMT. Cortical GM volumes did not differ between BRRMS and ARRMS, but the volumes of total brain tissue (p =.014) and thalami (p =.003) were larger in patients with BRRMS compared to ARRMS. A positive correlation was found between CCI and whole-brain volume in both BRRMS (r =.73, p