title: Recommended diagnostic criteria for multiple sclerosis: guidelines from the International Panel on the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis.
abstract: The International Panel on MS Diagnosis presents revised diagnostic criteria for multiple sclerosis (MS). The focus remains on the objective demonstration of dissemination of lesions in both time and space. Magnetic resonance imaging is integrated with dinical and other paraclinical diagnostic methods. The revised criteria facilitate the diagnosis of MS in patients with a variety of presentations, including "monosymptomatic" disease suggestive of MS, disease with a typical relapsing-remitting course, and disease with insidious progression, without clear attacks and remissions. Previously used terms such as "clinically definite" and "probable MS" are no longer recommended. The outcome of a diagnostic evaluation is either MS, "possible MS" (for those at risk for MS, but for whom diagnostic evaluation is equivocal), or "not MS."
authors.affiliation: Royal College of Physicians, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: W I
authors.initials: WI
authors.lastname: McDonald
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Compston
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Edan
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Goodkin
authors.forename: H P
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Hartung
authors.forename: F D
authors.initials: FD
authors.lastname: Lublin
authors.forename: H F
authors.initials: HF
authors.lastname: McFarland
authors.forename: D W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Paty
authors.forename: C H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Polman
authors.forename: S C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Reingold
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sandberg-Wollheim
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Sibley
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Thompson
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: van den Noort
authors.forename: B Y
authors.initials: BY
authors.lastname: Weinshenker
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Wolinsky
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000175:diagnosis*