MS Frontiers 2022 | Targeting paramagnetic rim lesions in multiple sclerosis

A subset of chronic active white matter lesions in multiple sclerosis (MS) are known as paramagnetic rim lesions (PRLs), identifiable by the presence of iron rims on susceptibility-based MRI. These PRLs have high specificity in differentiating MS from non-MS and have been proposed as a marker of compartmentalized smoldering disease, where the paramagnetic rim reflects iron accumulation in actively demyelinating microglia and macrophages. Alberto Calvi, MD, PhD Candidate, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, Barts Health NHS Trust, London, UK, talks on the clinical associations of PRLs. Increasing evidence supports their association with disease severity, physical disability, and cognitive performance. PRLs continue to be explored as a putative, objective biomarker and therapeutic target in MS. This interview took place during the MS Frontiers 2022 congress in Swansea, UK.