Department of Pediatrics and Pediatric Neurology, Georg-August-University Goettingen, Robert-Koch-Strasse 40, 37075 Goettingen, Germany. dpohl@med.uni-goettingen.de
The authors studied CSF characteristics in 136 patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) with a disease onset before age 16. In the initial diagnostic lumbar puncture, CSF-pleocytosis was observed in 66%, blood-CSF barrier dysfunction in 13%, and oligoclonal IgG in 92% of the early-onset MS (EOMS) patients. CSF oligoclonal IgG supports the early diagnosis of MS in childhood with a sensitivity similar to adult-onset MS.