repost. In preparation for the Hubbard Foundation presentations--time for all readers to learn about "hypoperfusion" or slowed blood flow thru the MS brain. It's real, and it's a problem.


Dr. Zamboni/Zivadinov's hypoperfusion study---full paper
Thanks to Paolo for alerting us to the publication of Dr. Zamboni's research on hypoperfusion, or low blood flow to and from MS brains.  This research was presented in April 2010 at AAN as a poster, but we have the full paper available to us online.   Those who have read the notes on this page know that this has been an area of research near to my heart.   Here is a link to the complete paper in pdf form:   http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1741-7015-9-22.pdf   To the best of our knowledge, this pilot study is the first to report a significant relationship between the presence and severity of CCSVI and hypoperfusion in the brain parenchyma. These preliminary findings should be confirmed in a larger cohort of MS patients to ensure that they generalize to the MS population as a whole. Reduced perfusion could contribute to the known mechanisms of virtual hypoxia in degenerated axons.    An altered CBF (cerebral blood flow) pattern may be a consequence not only of local circulatory disturbances due to inflammatory mechanisms in acute or chronic phases, but instead could result from an outflow blockage situated far away from the lesions. CCSVI is a vascular condition described in MS patients that is characterized by stenoses caused by intraluminal defects such as web, septum, malformed valve or, rarely, by segmental hypoplasia/agenesis [1,2]. Stenosing lesions of CCSVI have been classified among the truncular venous malformation in a consensus document [18,19]. Therefore, CCSVI may impact local hemodynamics and overload microcirculation at places distant fromthe location of the mechanical stenosis, as in any condition of venous obstruction of the major trunks. Such a mechanism may lead to capillary hypertension and leakage, consistently contributing to inflammation [20]. In this pilot study, we have shown a strong relationship between the severity of CCSVI and hypoperfusion in the WM, GM and SGM.     All 16 pwMS had CCSVI, none of the healthy controls had CCSVI.  All pwMS had slowed cerebral blood flow, or hypoperfusion, which affected the white matter and gray matter of their brains. That's 100% pwMS had CCSVI 0% of healthy controls NO CCSVI 100% pwMS had hypoperfusion, which was related to the severity of CCSVI.