title: Width of 3. Ventricle: reference values and clinical relevance in a cohort of patients with relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To estimate the quantity of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients with brain atrophy as indicated by third ventricular enlargement using transcranial colourcoded ultrasound (TCCS).
  
  
  METHODS
  The width of the 3. ventricle was assessed by TCCS in 70 healthy controls (male 31, female 39, mean age 41 ± 15 years, age range 18 - 79 years), and in a cohort of 54 patients with relapsing remitting MS (male 16, female 38, mean age 40 ± 10 years, median EDSS 2 [1-3]).
  
  
  RESULTS
  In the controls, the width of the 3. ventricle increased with age (without any sex differences) from 3.0 ± 0.76 mm in the age group < 40 years to 4.0 ± 0.74 mm in the age group of 60 years or more (ANOVA p=0.0001). Derived from regression analysis, the upper limit of the 95% Confidence Interval for each year provided cutoff points according to which 14 of 54 patients (25%) exhibited an enlarged 3. ventricle. In a multivariate regression analysis, the width of the 3. ventricle over all MS patients was significantly related to EDSS (Spearman rho , r=0.446, p<0.005) and to MS duration (r=0.319, p<0.005).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Even in MS patients in good clinical conditions the rate of patients with brain atrophy determined by TCCS is high.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Luzerner Kantonsspital, Spitalstrasse, CH-6000 Luzern, Switzerland ; Department of Internal Medicine, Spital Zollikerberg, Trichtenhauserstr. 20, CH-8125 Zollikerberg, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Müller
authors.forename: Regina
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Esser
authors.forename: Katarina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kötter
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Voss
authors.forename: Achim
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Müller
authors.forename: Petra
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Stellmes
keywords: Brain anatomy; brain atrophy; disease modifying therapy; multiple sclerosis; ultrasound; ventricle size.