Stroke risk in multiple sclerosis: a critical appraisal of the literature

Observational studies suggest that the occurrence of stroke on multiple sclerosis (MS) patients is higher compared to the general population. MS is a heterogeneous disease that involves an interplay of genetic, environmental and immune factors. The occurrence of stroke is subject to a wide range of both modifiable and non-modifiable, short- and long-term risk factors. Both MS and stroke share common risk factors. The immune mechanisms that underlie stroke are similar to neurodegenerative diseases and are attributed to neuroinflammation. The inflammation in autoimmune diseases may, therefore, predispose to an increased risk for stroke or potentiate the effect of conventional stroke risk factors. There are, however, additional determinants that contribute to a higher risk and incidence of stroke in MS. Due to the challenges that are associated with their differential diagnosis, the objective is to present an overview of the factors that may contribute to increased susceptibility or occurrence of stroke in MSpatients by performing a review of the available to date literature. As both MS and stroke can individually detrimentally affect the quality of life of afflicted patients, the identification of factors that contribute to an increased risk for stroke in MS is crucial for the prompt implementation of preventative therapeutic measures to limit the additive burden that stroke imposes.

Prevalence and adverse consequences of delayed diagnosis and misdiagnosis in thrombotic antiphospholipid syndrome. An observational cohort study and a review of the literature

OBIECTIVES

This study aims to prospectively evaluate the frequency and adverse consequences of diagnostic delay and misdiagnosis in a cohort of patients with thrombotic antiphospholipid syndrome (TAPS). In addition, a systematic review of the literature concerning the diagnostic delay and misdiagnosis of TAPS was carried out.

METHODS

Patient enrollment occurred between 1999 and 2022. The study group was formed by TAPS patients whose diagnosis was delayed and those who were misdiagnosed. The control group was made up of patients who were timely and correctly diagnosed with TAPS.

RESULTS

The literature review showed 42 misdiagnosed patients, 27 of them were in one retrospective cohort study and 15 in 13 case reports. One hundred sixty-one out of 189 patients (85.2%) received a timely, correct diagnosis of TAPS; 28 (14.8%) did not. The number of patients with diagnostic issues was significantly higher for the first period (1999-2010), and the number of patients with a correct diagnosis was significantly higher for the second one (2011-2022). When the clinical and laboratory characteristics of the patients with delayed diagnosis were compared with those with misdiagnosis, there was a significantly higher number of severe adverse consequences characterized by permanent disability or death in the latter group. The two most common types of misdiagnoses were systemic lupus erythematosus (6 cases, 46.1%) and cardiovascular diseases (4 cases, 30.8%).

CONCLUSIONS

The study demonstrates that although knowledge about TAPS has improved over time, diagnostic delays and errors remains to be addressed as they are strongly associated to adverse consequences. Key Points •Although knowledge of thrombotic antiphospholipid syndrome has improved over time, it is still limited. •Diagnostic delay and misdiagnosis are still an important issue that remains to be addressed as they are strongly associated to adverse consequences. •The three more frequent misdiagnoses are multiple sclerosis, systemic lupus erythematosus and cardiovascular diseases.

Neuropsychiatric Manifestations of Antiphospholipid Syndrome—A Narrative Review

Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is a common autoimmune pro-thrombotic condition characterised by thrombosis and pregnancy morbidity. There are a broad range of neuropsychiatric manifestations associated with APS, from focal symptoms to more global dysfunction. Patients commonly present with transient ischaemic attacks and ischaemic strokes, with identifiable lesions on brain imaging. However, the underlying pathogenesis remains uncertain in other manifestations, such as cognitive dysfunction, seizures, headache and chorea. The aim is to provide a comprehensive review of the various neuropsychiatric manifestations associated with APS. A detailed literature search was applied to PubMed, including citations from 1983 to December 2021.

Neurologic Manifestations of the Antiphospholipid Syndrome - an Update

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

In recent years, the spectrum of neurological manifestations of antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) has been growing. We provide a critical review of the literature with special emphasis on presentation, proposed mechanisms of disease, and treatment of neurological involvement in APS.

RECENT FINDINGS

Although stroke is the most common cause of neurological manifestations in patients with APS, other neurological disorders have been increasingly associated with the disease, including cognitive dysfunction, headache, and epilepsy. Direct oral anticoagulants have failed to show non-inferiority compared to vitamin K antagonists for the prevention of major thrombotic events. Antiphospholipid antibodies are often found in patients with acute COVID-19 but clear evidence supporting an association between these antibodies and the risk of thrombotic events, including stroke and cerebral venous thrombosis, is still lacking. APS patients may present with several distinct neurological manifestations. New criteria will facilitate the classification of patients presenting with increasingly recognized non-criteria neurological manifestations.

Molecular Biomarkers in Multiple Sclerosis and Its Related Disorders: A Critical Review

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic autoimmune disease affecting the central nervous system (CNS) which can lead to severe disability. Several diseases can mimic the clinical manifestations of MS. This can often lead to a prolonged period that involves numerous tests and investigations before a definitive diagnosis is reached. As well as the possibility of misdiagnosis. Molecular biomarkers can play a unique role in this regard. Molecular biomarkers offer a unique view into the CNS disorders. They help us understand the pathophysiology of disease as well as guiding our diagnostic, therapeutic, and prognostic approaches in CNS disorders. This review highlights the most prominent molecular biomarkers found in the literature with respect to MS and its related disorders. Based on numerous recent clinical and experimental studies, we demonstrate that several molecular biomarkers could very well aid us in differentiating MS from its related disorders. The implications of this work will hopefully serve clinicians and researchers alike, who regularly deal with MS and its related disorders.

Antiphospholipid Antibodies Overlapping in Isolated Neurological Syndrome and Multiple Sclerosis: Neurobiological Insights and Diagnostic Challenges

Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is characterized by arterial and venous thrombosis, pregnancy morbidity and fetal loss caused by pathogenic autoantibodies directed against phospholipids (PL) and PL-cofactors. Isolated neurological APS may represent a significant diagnostic challenge, as epidemiological, clinical and neuroimaging features may overlap with those of multiple sclerosis (MS). In an open view, MS could be considered as an organ-specific anti-lipid (phospholipid and glycosphingolipid associated proteins) disease, in which autoreactive B cells and CD8+ T cells play a dominant role in its pathophysiology. In MS, diverse autoantibodies against the lipid-protein cofactors of the myelin sheath have been described, whose pathophysiologic role has not been fully elucidated. We carried out a review to select clinical studies addressing the prevalence of antiphospholipid (aPL) autoantibodies in the so-called MS-like syndrome. The reported prevalence ranged between 2% and 88%, particularly aCL and aβ2GPI, with predominant IgM isotype and suggesting worse MS prognosis. Secondarily, an updated summary of current knowledge on the pathophysiological mechanisms and events responsible for these conditions is presented. We draw attention to the clinical relevance of diagnosing isolated neurological APS. Prompt and accurate diagnosis and antiaggregant and anticoagulant treatment of APS could be vital to prevent or at least reduce APS-related morbidity and mortality.

Antiphospholipid Syndrome and the Neurologist: From Pathogenesis to Therapy

Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is an autoimmune antibody-mediated condition characterized by thrombotic events and/or pregnancy morbidity in association with persistent positivity to antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL). The nervous system is frequently affected, as intracranial vessels are the most frequent site of arterial pathology. Over the course of years, many other neurological conditions not included in the diagnostic criteria, have been associated with APS. The pathogenic mechanisms behind the syndrome are complex and not fully elucidated. aPL enhance thrombosis, interfering with different pathways. Nevertheless, ischemic injury is not always sufficient to explain clinical features of the syndrome and immune-mediated damage has been advocated. This may be particularly relevant in the context of neurological complications. The reason why only a subgroup of patients develop non-criteria nervous system disorders and what determines the clinical phenotype are questions that remain open. The double nature, thrombotic and immunologic, of APS is also reflected by therapeutic strategies. In this review we summarize known neurological manifestations of APS, revisiting pathogenesis and current treatment options.

Internal Carotid Artery Occlusion in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus as a Potential Mimicker of Multiple Sclerosis

The diagnosis of neurological symptoms in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is often challenging, in part because they sometimes mimic features of multiple sclerosis (MS). Herein we report a case of a young female who presented with relapsing-remitting symptoms of unilateral visual loss and motor aphasia. Additionally, radiological findings revealed multiple white matter lesions on her brain that led to an initial diagnosis of MS based on the established diagnostic criteria. However, she was eventually diagnosed with neuropsychiatric SLE (NPSLE) presenting with extracranial internal carotid artery (ICA) occlusion. Her ICA occlusion had not been detected for 2 months until she underwent magnetic resonance angiography. Although exact underlying pathological mechanisms are unclear, both the ICA occlusion and MS-like brain white matter lesions could be attributed to SLE. This case demonstrated that both of these lesions can coexist in the same patient, suggesting that NPSLE with ICA occlusion can be a potential mimicker of MS, and vice versa. Care must be paid to avoid delay in the diagnosis.

Hughes syndrome and epilepsy: when to test for antiphospholipid antibodies?

Epilepsy and seizures are reported among the neurological manifestations of antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) at a prevalence rate of approximately 8%, which is nearly 10 times the prevalence of epilepsy in the general population. The association of seizures with antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) is even more significant in the presence of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). In this review, we discuss the epidemiological, pathophysiological, laboratory, clinical, and radiological aspects of this association, and derive suggestions on when to consider testing for aPL in epileptic patients and how to manage seizures secondary to APS based on literature data. Epilepsy due to APS should be considered in young patients presenting with seizures of unknown origin. Temporal lobe epilepsy seems to be particularly prevalent in APS patients. The pathogenesis is complex and may not only involve micro-thrombosis, but also a possible immune-mediated neuronal damage. Patients with seizures and positive aPL tend to develop thrombocytopenia and livedo racemosa more frequently compared with those without aPL. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) remains the imaging modality of choice in these patients. The presence of SLE and the presence of neurological symptoms significantly correlate with the presence of white matter changes on MRI. In contrast, the correlation between aPL positivity and the presence of white matter changes is very weak. Furthermore, MRI can be normal in more than 30–40% of neuropsychiatric lupus patients with or without aPL. aPL testing is recommended in young patients presenting with atypical seizures and multiple hyper-intensity lesions on brain MRI in the absence of other possible conditions. New MRI techniques can better understand the pathology of brain damage in neuro-APS. The therapeutic management of epileptic APS patients relies on anti-epileptic treatment and anticoagulant agents when there is evidence of a thrombotic event. In the absence of consensual recommendations, the decision of lifelong anticoagulation is discussed on a case-by-case basis. The anti-thrombotic benefit of hydroxychloroquine and statins is supported by several studies.

Musculoskeletal manifestations of the antiphospholipid syndrome

The scope of clinical and laboratory manifestations of the antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) has increased dramatically since its discovery in 1983, where any organ system can be involved. Musculoskeletal complications are consistently reported in APS patients, not only causing morbidity and mortality, but also affecting their quality of life. We reviewed all English papers on APS involvement in the musculoskeletal system using Google Scholar and Pubmed; all reports are summarized in a table in this review. The spectrum of manifestations includes arthralgia/arthritis, avascular necrosis of bone, bone marrow necrosis, complex regional pain syndrome type-1, muscle infarction, non-traumatic fractures, and osteoporosis. Some of these manifestations were reported in good quality studies, some of which showed an association between aPL-positivity and the occurrence of these manifestations, while others were merely described in case reports.

Current treatment of antiphospholipid syndrome: lights and shadows

For patients with antiphospholipid syndrome (APS), the consensus is to treat those who develop thrombosis with long-term oral anticoagulation therapy and to prevent obstetric manifestations by use of aspirin and heparin. These recommendations are based on data from randomized controlled trials and observational studies. Despite this body of knowledge, areas of uncertainty regarding the management of APS exist where evidence is scarce or nonexistent. In other words, for a subset of patients the course of management is unclear. Some examples are patients with 'seronegative' APS, those who do not fulfil the formal (clinical or serological) classification criteria for definite APS, and those with recurrent thrombotic events despite optimal anticoagulation. Other challenges include the treatment of clinical manifestations not included in the classification criteria, such as haematologic manifestations (thrombocytopenia and haemolytic anaemia), neurologic manifestations (chorea, myelitis and multiple sclerosis-like lesions), and nephropathy and heart valve disease associated with antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL), as well as the possible withdrawal of anticoagulation treatment in selected cases of thrombotic APS in which assays for aPL become persistently negative. This Review focuses on the current recommendations for thrombotic and obstetric manifestations of APS, as well as the management of difficult cases. Some aspects of treatment, such as secondary prophylaxis of venous thrombosis, are based on strong evidence--the 'lights' of APS treatment. Conversely, other areas, such as the treatment of non-criteria manifestations of APS, are based only on expert consensus or common sense and remain the 'shadows' of APS therapy.

Neuropsychiatric lupus: a mosaic of clinical presentations

Neuropsychiatric symptoms affect nearly half of the patients with systemic lupus erythematosus; however, the effect on disease severity, quality of life, and prognosis is tremendous. Symptoms of neuropsychiatric systemic lupus erythematosus may range from mild diffuse ones, to acute life threatening events. Although the underlying mechanisms are still largely unraveled, several pathogenic pathways are identified, such as antibody-mediated neurotoxicity, vasculopathy due to anti-phospholipid antibodies and other mechanisms, and cytokine-induced neurotoxicity. In the current review, we describe the old and the new regarding epidemiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis, and management of neuropsychiatric systemic lupus erythematosus. The possible link between neuropsychiatric symptoms and specific mechanisms may help to facilitate our understanding of the disease in the future, thus allowing for better treatment strategies.