Immunology of Multiple Sclerosis

In North America and throughout most of Europe, Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is the most frequent serious neurologic disorder that affects young adults. After trauma, it is the most common cause of neurologic disability among the young and middle-aged. While the diagnosis of MS rests on its clinical hallmarks, our ability to make an accurate diagnosis early in its clinical course has been aided enormously by the addition of CSF-IgG assays, measurements of evoked potentials, and magnetic resonance imaging. Despite these advances, effective treatment of the MS process eludes us.