Multiple Sclerosis and Neuro-Immunology Center Diagnostics

Diagnostics Lumbar Puncture: A lumbar puncture is similar to an epidural given to a woman during childbirth, but instead of administering anesthesia, a small sample of cerebrospinal fluid is collected and sent to the lab for testing. We recommend this be done by a radiologist who will use x-ray imaging to guide the needle placement. Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT): This device takes a picture of your retina, allowing us to measure retinal thickness, which can help your doctor monitor MS. MRI: Generates a picture of your brain and spinal cord, allowing us to see MS lesions. Not all MRI machines are created (or programmed) equally. A high-resolution (3-T) machine with MS sequences can distinguish MS spots from normal spots. A normal (1.5-T) MRI frequently misses MS.