[Diagnostic criteria and differential diagnosis of neuromyelitis optica]

Neuromyelitis optica (NMO) is an autoimmune central nervous system disease associated with anti-aquaporin 4 (AQP4) antibody. Although the current diagnostic criteria requires both optic neuritis and myelitis, many of the patients with anti-AQP4 antibody do not fulfil the criteria, so that they have a chance to be misdiagnosed as having multiple sclerosis (MS). To avoid the misdiagnosis, a sensitive method to detect anti-AQP4 antibody is required although widely used kits has lower sensitivity. Although MS is one of the most important differential diagnosis of NMO, diseases associated with anti-myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibody may mimic NMO clinical features and should be considered as differential diagnosis.