Long-term follow-up of suspected though unconfirmed MS.
OBJECTIVE
There is no gold standard diagnostic test for MS, and evaluation of present diagnostic criteria has almost exclusively been done in populations of which the vast majority is prone to develop MS. Patients referred for a potential MS diagnosis in whom ultimately another or no diagnosis is made are seldomly reported in a systematic way. We report, after 7 years, on the diagnoses made in a cohort of patients with suspected though unconfirmed MS.


METHODS
We retrieved information on the current diagnosis of all patients who had visited our center between 1998 and 2001 for a second opinion concerning a possible MS diagnosis and in whom no diagnosis had been made at that time.


RESULTS
Seventy-five patients (86%) could be retrieved and cooperated. In seven patients, a diagnosis of MS, in eight patients another neurological diagnosis had been made. In the remaining 60 patients, still no neurological diagnosis had been made.


CONCLUSIONS
In potential MS patients seen in a tertiary referral center, the likelihood that a patient who is not diagnosed with MS will in the future develop a neurological disease is small. This study suggests that, in addition to playing a role in diagnosing MS, MRI can be helpful to exclude MS in clinically doubtful cases.
Department of Neurology, VU University Medical Center, MS Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. jm.nielsen@vumc.nl
J M
JM
Nielsen
B M J
BM
Uitdehaag
C H
CH
Polman
D000328:Adult; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003951:Diagnostic Errors; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008499:Medical Records; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000175:diagnosis*; D012017:Referral and Consultation