Subventricular Zone Microstructure in Pediatric-Onset Multiple Sclerosis.

Abstract

Listen

Translate article

The aim of this study was to explore the microstructural dynamics of the subventricular zone (SVZ) with aging and their associations with clinical disability and brain structural damage in pediatric-onset multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. One-hundred and forty-one pediatric-onset MS patients (67 pediatric and 74 adults with pediatric-onset) and 233 healthy controls (HC) underwent neurological and 3.0 T MRI assessment. Fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) were extracted from the SVZ and the thalamus (as control region). In HC, SVZ FA was higher until age 40 then declined, whereas MD was lower until age 35 before rising (false discovery rate p value [pFDR] ≤ 0.008). Thalamic FA was higher until age 30 and then declined, whereas MD was higher until age 50 (pFDR ≤ 0.007). Pediatric MS patients showed significantly higher SVZ FA than pediatric HC (pFDR < 0.001), while adult patients showed no differences compared to adult HC (pFDR ≤ 0.724). Adult patients had lower thalamic FA and higher MD (pFDR < 0.001). Adults had lower SVZ FA and MD, but higher thalamic MD compared to pediatric patients (pFDR < 0.001). In pediatric MS, higher SVZ FA and MD were associated with higher white matter (WM) lesion volume (LV) and choroid plexus volume and lower brain and thalamic volumes (pFDR ≤ 0.047). In adult patients, higher SVZ MD associated with higher WM LV, lower brain volumes, and lower z-SDMT (pFDR≤0.019). Thalamic microstructural abnormalities were associated with more severe disability and brain damage in both groups (pFDR ≤ 0.018). Our findings suggest that microstructural changes in the SVZ occur early in pediatric MS and are associated with brain structural damage but not with clinical impairment. ANN NEUROL 2025.