The Value of Autoantibody and Viral Serologic Examinations in the Differential Diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis and Stroke

Ahmet Şair; Utku Ogan Akyıldız; Berna Korkmazgil; Nefati Kıylıoğlu

doi:10.4274/tnd.2019.09735

Ahmet Şair¹, Utku Ogan Akyıldız¹, Berna Korkmazgil², Nefati Kıylıoğlu¹

¹Adnan Menderes University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Neurology, Aydın, Turkey
²Adnan Menderes University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Microbiology, Aydın, Turkey

Keywords: Multiple sclerosis, stroke, SLE, ANA, EBV, CMV

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the value of autoantibody and viral serologic examinations in the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis (MS) and stroke and their effect on the course of treatment.

Materials and Methods: Patients who were admitted to the neurology clinic between 2012 and 2016 were retrospectively evaluated. The patients were screened for autoantibodies including anti-nuclear antibody (ANA) and anti-dsDNA, and viral serology including Epstein-Barr virus, varicella-zoster virus, cytomegalovirus, herpes simplex virus type 1 and 2. The study cohort was grouped as the MS group, stroke group, and “other” diseases group (e.g. polyneuropathy, myasthenia gravis, dementia, headache, epilepsy). The data from all the groups were further analyzed to determine whether these tests provided an increase in diagnostic performance.

Results: Among the autoantibody and viral serologic tests, the most commonly used test was ANA (71 cases in the MS group, 160 cases in the stroke group, and 482 cases in the other diseases group). All test reports, based on positivity/negativity, did not lead to any change in the initial diagnosis of the disease and the treatment strategy in all groups.

Conclusion: Information obtained from autoantibody and viral serologic tests does not affect the diagnosis of MS and stroke. Performing these tests for routine screening is considered worthless unless there is an important finding regarding clinical disease.