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The Diagnostic and Prognostic Value of Neurofilament Heavy Chain Levels in Immune-Mediated Optic Neuropathies

2012; Hindawi Publishing Corporation; Volume: 2012; Linguagem: Inglês

10.1155/2012/217802

2090-2662

Axel Petzold, Gordon T. Plant,

Amyloidosis: Diagnosis, Treatment, Outcomes

Background . Loss of visual function differs between immune-mediated optic neuropathies and is related to axonal loss in the optic nerve. This study investigated the diagnostic and prognostic value of a biomarker for neurodegeneration, the neurofilament heavy chain (NfH) in three immune-mediated optic neuropathies. Methods . A prospective, longitudinal study including patients with optic neuritis due to multiple sclerosis (MSON, n = 20 ), chronic relapsing inflammatory optic neuritis (CRION, n = 19 ), neuromyelitis optica (NMO, n = 9 ), and healthy controls ( n = 28 ). Serum NfH-SMI35 levels were quantified by ELISA. Findings . Serum NfH-SMI35 levels were highest in patients with NMO (mean 0 .79 ± 1 .51 ng/mL) compared to patients with CRION ( 0.13 ± 0.16 ng/mL, P = 0.007 ), MSON ( 0 .09 ± 0 .09 , P = 0.008 ), and healthy controls ( 0 .01 ± 0 .02 ng/mL, P = 0.001 ). High serum NfH-SMI35 levels were related to poor visual outcome. Conclusions . Blood NfH-SMI35 levels are of moderate diagnostic and more important prognostic value in immune-mediated optic neuropathies. We speculate that longitudinal blood NfH levels may help to identify particular disabling events in relapsing conditions.