title: Prospective study of patients presenting with acute partial transverse myelopathy.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The clinical and radiological characteristics of myelopathy in multiple sclerosis (MS) are relatively well known. Nevertheless, it remains difficult for the clinician to ascertain conversion to MS after a first episode of acute partial transverse myelopathy (APTM).
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aims of this study were to define predictive factors for conversion to clinically definite MS after an APTM and to define predictive factors for disease severity.
  
  
  METHODS
  Between 1994 and 2001, we prospectively included 55 patients presenting with a first episode of APTM. Three patients were lost during the follow-up. We evaluated clinical signs, spinal cord and brain MRI, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and visual evoked potentials on admission. After a mean followup of 35 months (range 12-86), we evaluated the diagnosis and, among the MS group, the severity of the disease.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 52 APTM patients who completed the study, 30 became clinically definite MS. The predictive factors for conversion to MS were: initial sensory symptoms, latero-posterior spinal cord lesion, abnormal brain MRI and oligoclonal bands in CSF. In the MS group, the number of spinal cord lesions on MRI was the only predictive factor for a poor outcome, being statistically correlated with a higher number of relapses.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  On the basis of our results, we propose that, in patients with APTM, sensory symptoms, oligoclonal bands and brain MRI are predictive factors for subsequent conversion to clinically definite MS and that within the latter patients the number of spinal cord lesions on MRI is the only predictive factor for a poor outcome.
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Neurology, CHRU de Lille, Lille, France.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cordonnier
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: de Seze
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Breteau
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ferriby
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Michelin
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Stojkovic
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Pruvo
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Vermersch
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology; D005074:Evoked Potentials, Visual; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid / Q000473:pathology*; D009188:Myelitis, Transverse / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid / Q000473:pathology*; D043025:Oligoclonal Bands / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011379:Prognosis; D011446:Prospective Studies; D013116:Spinal Cord / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D043025:Oligoclonal Bands