No Placebo Group
Every participant receives an active treatment — no one gets a placebo.
Healthy Volunteers Welcome
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
No Study Drug
Researchers observe your health over time — no experimental treatment is given.
Ready to participate?
Review the details below, then apply to join this clinical trial.
At a Glance
Age
18 – 120
Sex
Any
Study type
Observational
Participants needed
250 (estimated)
Sponsor
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) · NIH
Who this trial is looking for
This trial is looking for adults with multiple sclerosis or a similar brain condition. Participants will undergo various tests including MRIs and eye exams, and will be followed for their health over time.
Are You a Good Fit for This Trial?
You may be able to join if
I am 18 years old or older.
I have been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis or a similar brain condition.
I am willing to return for follow-up visits at least once a year.
I can give informed consent to participate.
I am able to participate in study procedures.
I agree to have an autopsy after my death.
I am a NIH employee or staff member.
You may not be able to join if
I am unwilling to allow my samples and data to be shared for future studies.
Summarized in plain language from this trial's official eligibility criteria.
The full criteria are further down this page — only the research team can
confirm whether you qualify.
Think this trial could be right for you?
Answer three quick questions written from this study's own rules to see if you may qualify. No account needed to find out.
Background:
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a disease that damages the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord). This leads to increased physical disability over time. The disease is lifelong once it begins. Researchers want to learn more about MS s stages and follow them until a person s death.
Objective:
To understand how the physical and clinical signs of MS relate to its changes over time.…
Background:
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a disease that damages the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord). This leads to increased physical disability over time. The disease is lifelong once it begins. Researchers want to learn more about MS s stages and follow them until a person s death.
Objective:
To understand how the physical and clinical signs of MS relate to its changes over time.
Eligibility:
Adults age 18 or older with MS or a disease of the brain and spinal cord that may act like MS.
Design:
Participants will have a medical history and a complete neurological exam. They may have timed tests of neurological function, such as a 25-foot walk and a 9-hole peg test.
Participants will have multi-day visits about once a year.
Participants will have blood drawn.
Participants may have a brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan. They may also have an MRI of the spinal cord. They may get a contrast agent (dye) injected into a tube in an arm vein. During the MRI, participants will lie on a table that slides in and out of a metal cylinder.
Participants will have the thickness of their retina measured using optical coherence tomography. A camera on top of a table uses lasers. Participants will look through a lens and follow instructions. Eye drops may be used to dilate the pupils.
Participants will chew on a piece of sterile cotton for 1 minute to collect saliva.
Participants agree to have an autopsy at the time of their death and to donate some of their organs to research, such as the brain and spinal cord.
Trial Locations
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Eligibility Criteria
* INCLUSION CRITERIA:
* Diagnosis of MS according to consensus criteria at the time of enrollment OR diagnosis of a disease that shares clinical, imaging, or biological features with MS OR individuals without known CNS disease.
* Age greater than or equal to 18.
* Able to participate in study proced…
* INCLUSION CRITERIA:
* Diagnosis of MS according to consensus criteria at the time of enrollment OR diagnosis of a disease that shares clinical, imaging, or biological features with MS OR individuals without known CNS disease.
* Age greater than or equal to 18.
* Able to participate in study procedures and provide high-quality clinical research data (for example, prior MRI scans show ability to tolerate the MRI scan with minimal motion artifact).
* Willing to return to NIH for follow-up visits approximately annually (or every 5 years for non-CNS controls) until the time of autopsy. Note: participants who become too sick to return to NIH will not be removed from the study.
* Willing to undergo autopsy with donation of at least the brain, spinal cord, and retinas.
* Able to provide informed consent at the time of initial study enrollment and willing to appoint a Durable Power of Attorney (DPA) if an advanced directive is not already in place.
* Except for non-CNS controls, simultaneously participating in another screening or natural history protocol within the NINDS Neuroimmunology Clinic at the time of study entry.
* Eligible NIH employees and staff may participate.
EXCLUSION CRITERIA:
Unwilling to allow sharing and/or use in future studies of coded samples and data that are collected for this study.
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