Abstract
BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to determine the predictive value of visual evoked potentials (VEPs) in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) in achieving no evidence of disease activity-3 (NEDA-3) during up to 10 years of first-line immunomodulatory therapy and to determine whether the lateralization of optic nerve damage may have prognostic significance concerning clinical disability and response to therapy. METHODS: In a retrospective study, a total of 83 patients (53 female and 30 male) with RRMS participated. The average age of patients was 38.31 ± 9.01. Patients were followed for 2, 5 or 10 years. VEPs were measured at the beginning of the follow-up and after many years of monitoring. Data on optical neuritis (ON) were obtained from medical history. The degree of disability was estimated by the neurologist (independent rater), and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging of the endocranium was performed with gadolinium contrasts. Achieving NEDA-3 is considered a favorable outcome of treatments. RESULTS: Among those treated, 19 (22.9%) reached NEDA-3, while 64 (77.1%) did not reach NEDA-3. The values of the evoked potential (EP) score for the left eye (r = 0.008, odds ratio (OR) = 0.344 (0.156-0.757)) and latency for the left eye (r = 0.042, OR = 0.966 (0.934-0.999)) at the onset of disease were predictive factors for achieving NEDA-3. CONCLUSIONS: A normal VEP at the beginning of RRMS increases the chance of reaching NEDA-3 by about six times.