@article {Pelizzari, author = {L. Pelizzari and D. Jakimovski and M.M. Lagan{\`a} and N. Bergsland and J. Hagemeier and G. Baselli and B. Weinstock-Guttman and R. Zivadinov}, title = {Five-Year Longitudinal Study of Neck Vessel Cross-Sectional Area in Multiple Sclerosis}, year = {2018}, doi = {10.3174/ajnr.A5738}, publisher = {American Journal of Neuroradiology}, abstract = {BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Alterations of neck vessel cross-sectional area in multiple sclerosis have been reported. Our aim was to investigate the evolution of the neck vessel cross-sectional area in patients with MS and healthy controls during 5 years.MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixty-nine patients with MS (44 relapsing-remitting MS, 25 progressive MS) and 22 age- and sex-matched healthy controls were examined twice, 5 years apart, on a 3T MR imaging scanner using 2D neck MR angiography. Cross-sectional areas were computed for the common carotid/internal carotid arteries, vertebral arteries, and internal jugular veins for all slices between the C3 and C7 cervical levels. Longitudinal cross-sectional area differences at each cervical level and the whole-vessel course were tested within study groups and between patients with MS with and without cardiovascular disease using mixed-model analysis and the related-samples Wilcoxon singed rank test. The Benjamini-Hochberg procedure was performed to correct for multiple comparisons.RESULTS: No significant cross-sectional area differences were seen between patients with MS and healthy controls at baseline or at follow-up. During the follow-up, significant cross-sectional area decrease was found in patients with MS for the common carotid artery{\textendash}ICAs (C4: P = .048; C7: P = .005; whole vessel: P = .012), for vertebral arteries (C3: P = .028; C4: P = .028; C7: P = .028; whole vessel: P = .012), and for the internal jugular veins (C3: P = .014; C4: P = .008; C5: P = .010; C6: P = .010; C7: P = .008; whole vessel: P = .002). Patients with MS without cardiovascular disease had significantly greater change than patients with MS with cardiovascular disease for internal jugular veins at all levels.CONCLUSIONS: For 5 years, patients with MS showed significant cross-sectional area decrease of all major neck vessels, regardless of the disease course and cardiovascular status.CCAcommon carotid arteryCSAcross-sectional areaCVDcardiovascular diseaseEDSSExpanded Disability Status ScaleHChealthy controlsHCCVDhealthy controls with cardiovascular diseaseHCnoCVDhealthy controls without no cardiovascular diseaseIJVinternal jugular veinIQRinterquartile rangeMSCVDpatients with MS with cardiovascular diseaseMSnoCVDpatients with MS without cardiovascular diseaseRRMSrelapsing-remitting MSPMSprogressive MSVAvertebral arteryWVwhole vesselMSmultiple sclerosisICAinternal carotid artery}, issn = {0195-6108}, URL = {https://www.ajnr.org/content/early/2018/07/26/ajnr.A5738}, eprint = {https://www.ajnr.org/content/early/2018/07/26/ajnr.A5738.full.pdf}, journal = {American Journal of Neuroradiology} }