Maria Assunta Rocca1,2, Antonia Ceccarelli1, Sebastiano Galantucci1,2, Angelo Ghezzi3, Elisabetta Pagani1, Andrea Falini4,5, Giancarlo Comi2, Massimo Filippi1,2
1Neuroimaging Research Unit, Scientific Institute Hospital San Raffaele, Milan, Italy; 2Department of Neurology, Scientific Institute Hospital San Raffaele, Milan, Italy; 3MS center, Ospedale di Gallarate, Gallarate, Italy; 4CERMAC, Scientific Institute Hospital San Raffaele, Milan, Italy; 5Department of Neuroradiology, Scientific Institute Hospital San Raffaele, Milan, Italy
To investigate the mechanisms responsible for the favorable clinical course of benign multiple sclerosis (BMS), we acquired functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during right hand movement in 17 BMS, 15 secondary progressive (SP) MS patients and 10 healthy volunteers. While, compared to controls, BMS patients had exclusively an increased activation of the left primary sensorimotor cortex, SPMS patients had, compared to the other two groups, increased activations of several areas in the fronto-parietal lobes, and reduced activations of the supplementary motor area, basal ganglia, and cerebellum, suggesting a relative preservation of brain adaptive properties in BMS.