title: Occurrence of ankylosing spondylitis and multiple sclerosis-like syndrome in a HLA-B27 positive patient.
abstract: Occurrence of multiple sclerosis (MS) in patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) has been reported in isolated cases. We describe a white 33-year-old male with a definite familial HLAB27 positive AS and MS-like syndrome. The patient developed acute onset of gait difficulty, postural unsteadiness, dysarthria and right side weakness that resolved within 1 month; after 6 months he presented right-sided face sensory loss, disappeared after 2 weeks. Brain and cervical MRI was performed twice and showed disseminated lesions in space (multiple foci of increased signal intensity in the periventricular white matter, in the corpus callosum, in the hypothalamus, in the brainstem and in the cervical spinal cord) and in time (a new enhancing lesion >3 months after the onset of the clinical event). Visual evoked potentials were markedly altered. Cerebrospinal fluid examination was negative for intrathecal production of oligoclonal bands. Differential diagnosis was considered and other pathologies were excluded.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurological, Behavioural and Neurosurgical Sciences, Section of Neurological Sciences, University of Siena, Viale Bracci 2, 53100, Siena, Italy.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mignarri
authors.forename: Maria Teresa
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Dotti
authors.forename: Carla
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Battisti
authors.forename: Ignazio
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Vallone
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Federico
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology; D005074:Evoked Potentials, Visual / Q000502:physiology; D020233:Gait Disorders, Neurologic / Q000209:etiology; D015796:HLA-B27 Antigen / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D017116:Low Back Pain / Q000150:complications; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000150:complications* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology; D009460:Neurologic Examination; D013167:Spondylitis, Ankylosing / Q000150:complications* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D015796:HLA-B27 Antigen