Ibtisam Al Thubaiti
King Fahad Specialist Hospital, Saudi Arabia
Title: Neuromyelitis optica: New Insights
Biography
Biography: Ibtisam Al Thubaiti
Abstract
Neuromyelitisoptica (NMO) is an inflammatory disease that traditionally described to affect the spinal cord and the eyes causing severe transverse myelitis and optic neuritis. The discovery of disease specific NMO- IgG antibodies in 2004 has revolutionized the understanding of the disease pathology, widened its clinical spectrum, aided in earlier diagnosis, targeted therapy and consequently in a better outcome. Despite that, NMO-IgG antibody sensitivity is high reaching 73% with cell-based assays, there are cases that are seronegative and will be challenging to diagnose. Recently, the discovery of myelin oligodendrocytes glycoprotein (MOG) antibodies in seronegative NMO patients has delineated another spectrum of inflammatory CNS diseases that mimic NMO clinically but not pathologically. This presentation will highlight the clinical picture of NMO spectrum disorder, the diagnostic challenges, 2015 diagnostic criteria, and the differences between anti-NMO and anti-MOG antibody positive disorders.