Chronic Cerebrospinal Venous Insufficiency Disproven as the Cause of MS, Again

The gold standard of venography demonstrated no difference in venous abnormalities between those with and without multiple sclerosis.

Chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency is a hypothesis proposed by a vascular surgeon to be the cause of multiple sclerosis (MS). The rationale for the entity and treatment was based on preliminary unblinded, open-label, single-center studies that used ultrasound (NEJM JW Neurol Sep 21 2010). Despite a unified call for caution and for reproducible results from MS specialists, thousands of patients have flocked to have this procedure performed (NEJM JW Neurol Apr 9 2013). Patient advocacy groups and governmental agencies have funded several independent investigations for clarity. Now, researchers have conducted a study comparing ultrasound findings with venography, the gold standard for diagnosing venous abnormalities. The investigators …

Reviewing Author

Robert T. Naismith, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardAlexion Pharmaceuticals; Amgen; Astoria; Biogen; Bristol Myers Squibb; Celltrion; Genentech; Hoffmann-La Roche; Genzyme; EMD Serono; Immpact-Bio; Immunic Therapeutics; Kyverna; Lundbeck; Novartis; Sandoz; TG Therapeutics

Grant/Research SupportNational Institutes of Health; National Multiple Sclerosis Society; U.S. Department of Defense

Leadership Positions in Professional SocietiesConsortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers (Treasurer)

Robert T. Naismith, MD

Disclosures

Grant/Research SupportNational Institutes of Health; National Multiple Sclerosis Society; U.S. Department of Defense

Leadership Positions in Professional SocietiesConsortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers (Treasurer)

Chronic Cerebrospinal Venous Insufficiency Disproven as the Cause of MS, Again

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Reviewing Author