This Is MS Multiple Sclerosis Community: Knowledge & Support

What is different in SWI-MRI, according to Dr. Haacke, is that brain damage shown due to iron deposition actually CORRESPONDS to disability in MS.

The more iron deposed in the brain, the more disability, the more progressive MS is. This is different than the usual measuring of hyperintense lesions on MRI, which have no specific correlation to disease severity.

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What is different in SWI-MRI, according to Dr. Haacke, is that brain damage shown due to iron deposition actually CORRESPONDS to disability in MS.

The more iron deposed in the brain, the more disability, the more progressive MS is. This is different than the usual measuring of hyperintense lesions on MRI, which have no specific correlation to disease severity.

Does anyone know if there are any studies that show this?

CONCLUSION: The findings from this pilot study suggest that CCSVI may be an important mechanism related to iron deposition in the brain parenchyma of MS patients.

In turn, iron deposition, as measured by SWI, is a modest-to-strong predictor of disability progression, lesion volume accumulation and atrophy development in patients with MS.

CONCLUSION: Iron may serve as a biomarker of venous vascular damage in multiple sclerosis. The backward iron accumulation pattern seen in the basal ganglia and thalamus of most MS patients is consistent with the hypothesis of venous hypertension

In CIS patients, deep GM is not spared, suggesting that iron-related changes and neurodegeneration occurs early. The magnitude of such damage is only minor and not associated with an increased risk of evolution to CDMS.

CONCLUSIONS: Neurodegenerative disease-like deep gray matter lesions can be frequently detected by transcranial sonography (TCS) in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS).

Findings suggest that TCS shows changes of brain iron metabolism which correlate with future progress of MS.

CONCLUSIONS: Quantitative assessment by R(2)* relaxometry suggests increased iron deposition in the basal ganglia of MS patients, which is associated with disease duration and brain atrophy.

CONCLUSION: The amount of iron deposition in the brain may serve as a surrogate biomarker for different MS lesion characteristics. SWI showed many lesions missed by conventional methods and six different lesion characteristics.

SWI was particularly effective at recognizing the presence of iron in MS lesions and in the basal ganglia and pulvinar thalamus

CONCLUSIONS: Gray matter T2 hypointensity in MS is associated with brain atrophy and is a stronger predictor of disability and clinical course than are conventional MRI findings.

While longitudinal studies are warranted, these results suggest that pathologic iron deposition is a surrogate marker of the destructive disease process.

Dr. Mark Haacke , the MRI Institute for Biomedical Research. Detroit, MI
MRI-SWI (susceptibility weighted imagery) cerebral veins and iron deposition-
Dr. Haacke developed SWI to see specific patterns in the venous structure. He states his findings in MS brains is consistent with everything presented today regarding venous structure, oxygen and iron deposition.

He offers thanks to the foundation and Bologna for the openness of discussion and the freedom of ideas. He asserts that CCSVI does not go against what we know about MS....however it will further define it.

In normal brain tissue, iron appears as ferritin 80% of the time and hemeiron 20%.
Iron can be visualized on SWI- it shows up at 3 tesla as dark gray. Capillary density absorbs most iron, and the basal ganglia is where it appears most.

In imaging MS brains, there is an increase in basal ganglia and thalamus iron, and this can serve as a bio marker for MS. Iron deposition progresses over time...the more iron, the worse the patient outcome will be.

Iron in the thalamus is a good bio marker for MS progression, without measuring brain lesions. Iron content and area of iron deposition increase with time.

There is a dramatic increase in iron in the brain in young people with MS as compared to controls, and this can be related to venous reflux. MS lesions show up on SWI as high in iron content.

Dawson’s Fingers enhance on SWI with LOTS of iron.....there is a uniform relationship between the veins and lesions.

Is this a form of demyelination? Microbleeding? Perhaps it is hemosiderin?

BOLD technology- a means to measure blood oxygen levels. SWI is sensitive to local iron content- but neuros weren’t interested in this, no one has cared about output function.

In 7 Tesla MRIs, you can see venules. We can see the microvascular response to iron deposition. Perfusion weighted imagery gives us the complete picture.

Progressive MS shows a loss of oxygen in the brain. A complete change in cerebral hemodynamics, it is much worse the RRMS.

SWIM technology- is an attempt to quantify the de-oxyginated saturation of the veins. Iron builds up counter current to the flow, it gets much worse with time.

Dr. Haacke wonders if in Sturge Weber syndrome there is a venous obstruction? No one has ever looked....neuros focus on the brain to the exclusion of the rest of the body. SWI technology will provide new and accurate markers for studying abnormal iron content in the MS brain.

Iron acts as an inflammatory agent in he brain. There is a microvascular breakdown and ischemic areas lose cerebral bloodflow.

The pieces of the puzzle fit when considering how CCSVI can do this to the MS brain.

Can SWI be used as a bio marker in early MS? Should we be treating MS with chelating agents and antiinflammatories?

MS patients have an increased amount of iron in the basal ganglia- and this may very well be from venous obstruction. There are 1000 systems in the world that can do SWI technology. There is now spin software available on line- so that anyone can use SWI capabilities
www.MRimaging.com

The technology exists- we need to create a complete MS protocol...one that considers oxygen saturation, iron deposition, and perfusion time.

cheerleader, have you ever heard if dr. haacke or anyone is studying or trying to come up with a safe way to get rid of the iron once a person is liberated? or, do they feel once proper flow is restored it will help get rid of it. i have read that most people with ms have very high aluminum in them. i for one do. have you ever heard if that is in the picture? probably the wrong time and place to get into this but thought i'd ask. thanks