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Aphasia in multiple sclerosis: clinical and radiologic correlations
A Achiron1, I Ziv, R Djaldetti
1Department of Neurology, Beilinson Medical Center, Petah-tiqva, Israel.
Neurology
|November 1, 1992
Summary
Aphasia is uncommon in multiple sclerosis (MS). This report details two MS patients who experienced sudden aphasia due to large brain lesions, with significant language recovery observed.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Neuroscience
- Clinical Medicine
Background:
- Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic autoimmune disease affecting the central nervous system.
- Aphasia, a disorder of language, is rarely associated with MS, making its occurrence noteworthy.
Observation:
- Two patients with clinically definite, relapsing-remitting MS presented with acute aphasia.
- Brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed large demyelinating plaques in critical language areas (left frontal lobe, left centrum semiovale).
- These lesions were newly developed, not present on prior imaging.
Findings:
- The acute aphasia in both patients was attributed to the newly identified large demyelinating lesions.
- Both patients demonstrated substantial improvement in language function within weeks.
- One patient showed a partial resolution of the causative lesion on follow-up MRI after 3 months.
Implications:
- This case series highlights that aphasia can be an acute manifestation of MS, particularly with large focal lesions.
- It underscores the importance of neuroimaging in diagnosing the cause of aphasia in MS patients.
- The findings suggest potential for recovery of language function in MS-related aphasia, possibly linked to lesion resolution.