Abstract #1404

Evaluation of DTI Indices in the Cervical Spinal Cord as Markers of Sensorimotor Impairment in MS Patients with Mild Disability

Kristin P. O'Grady^1,2, Kurt G. Schilling², Mereze Visagie², Sanjana Satish², Shekinah Malone³, Atlee Witt², Anna Combes², Richard Dylan Lawless^2,4, Colin D. McKnight¹, Francesca R. Bagnato⁵, and Seth A. Smith^1,2,4

¹Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, United States, ²Vanderbilt University Institute of Imaging Science, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, United States, ³Meharry School of Medicine, Meharry Medical College, Nashville, TN, United States, ⁴Department of Biomedical Engineering, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States, ⁵Department of Neurology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, United States

Spinal cord pathology is integral to disease symptoms and progression in multiple sclerosis (MS), but imaging methods developed and optimized for studying the spinal cord in vivo with clinically relevant scan times are lacking. Here, we applied a clinically feasible diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) sequence to examine relationships between imaging measures of microstructural damage in the spinal cord and lower extremity functional deficits in low-disability, relapsing-remitting MS patients. Our results show significant correlations between gray matter radial diffusivity and measures of sensation and motor function.

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