title: Clinical and subclinical neurological involvement in children of conjugal multiple sclerosis patients.
abstract: We report the occurrence of clinically definite multiple sclerosis in an offspring of a couple with conjugal multiple sclerosis. Extensive investigation of all members of this family, which includes two additional asymptomatic children, eliminated the possibility of alternative neurological diagnoses. All family members were studied with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), evoked potentials, and human leukocyte antigen (HLA) typing. An asymptomatic child had subtle white matter abnormalities on MRI, suggesting subclinical neurological involvement. This study documents the third case of multiple sclerosis in the child of conjugal multiple sclerosis patients and provides the first report of MRI lesions in an asymptomatic offspring of the same parents. Neurodiagnostic and immunogenetic investigations of such rare family clusters may contribute to the elucidation of the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, USA.
authors.forename: C S
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Constantinescu
authors.forename: R I
authors.initials: RI
authors.lastname: Grossman
authors.forename: P F
authors.initials: PF
authors.lastname: Finelli
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kamoun
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zmijewski
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Cohen
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005071:Evoked Potentials / Q000502:physiology; D005192:Family Health; D005260:Female; D006650:Histocompatibility Testing; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D017533:Marital Status; D008875:Middle Aged; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000150:complications* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology; D009420:Nervous System / Q000473:pathology*; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000209:etiology / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D009679:Nuclear Family; D010290:Parents