Retinal Neuro-vascular Coupling in Patients With Multiple Sclerosis

Recruiting now · Not applicable

Conditions studied: Multiple Sclerosis, Relapsing-Remitting, Optic Neuritis

In brief

Multiple sclerosis (MS) affects approximately 2.3 million patients worldwide, with a global median prevalence of 33 per 100,000. MS is diagnosed at an average of 30 years and affects twice as many women as men. MS is traditionally diagnosed by the presentation of lesions of the central nervous system, disseminated in time and in space, proven by clinical examination and magnetic resonance imaging. Several anatomical parameters in the eye, both vascular and neural, have been found to be altered in MS patients. Because of its unique optical properties, the eye offers the possibility of the non-invasive assessment of both structural and functional alterations in neuronal tissue. As the neuro-retina is part of the brain, it does not come as a surprise that neuro-degenerative changes in the brain are accompanied by structural and possibly also functional changes in the neuro-retina and the ocular vasculature. The current study seeks to test the hypothesis that beside the known anatomical changes, also functional changes can be detected in the retina of patients with MS. For this purpose, flicker light induced hyperemia will be measured in the retina as a functional test to assess the coupling between neural activity and blood flow. Further, structural parameters such as retinal nerve fiber layer thickness and function parameters such as ocular blood flow and retinal oxygenation will be assessed and compared to age and sex matched controls.

Key facts

Study ID
NCT03401879
Run by
Medical University of Vienna
People needed
50
Starts
2018-02-01
Expected to finish
2026-03-01
Last updated by the study team
2025-05-23

Who can join

Age: 18 and older. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: accepted.

Where it is running

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

Trial information comes from ClinicalTrials.gov and is refreshed daily. TrialsForMe does not provide medical care and does not run the studies it lists.