The effects of interferon beta-1a on proton MR spectroscopic imaging in patients with multiple sclerosis, a controlled study, preliminary results

To evaluate the effects of interferon beta-1a(INFβ-1a) on brain metabolites in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), we performed Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Imaging (MRSI) on five patients treated with INFβ-1a (Rebif 44 μg), and on five untreated patients. Six healthy volunteers were used as controls. Patients were evaluated at the beginning, in the first, third, sixth, and twelfth month. There were no significant differences in normal appearing white matter (NAWM) metabolite peaks of the control group and patients with MS. However, in white matter lesions (WML) and NAWM there was significant differences between the basal and the other months' metabolic peaks (p < 0.05) in the treatment group although no differences emerged in the untreated group. These data suggest that INFβ-1a has a favorable effect on restoration of metabolites in MS lesions.