ABSTRACT
This study described the clinical and paraclinical features of south Indian patients with longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis (LETM) and contrasted the findings betweenaquaporin-4 positive versus negative patients. The subjects were recruited between2010 and 2013.The distinctive features among71 LETM patients were compared and it was observed that 56% of the total subjects were found to be AQP4-Ab positive. The ratio of female tomale was found to be higher in the AQP4-Ab positive group. Magnetic resonance imaging showed holocord involvement more commonly in AQP4-Abnegative than positive group. The presence of hypointense lesions did not correlate with severity. The main distinctive features between AQP4-Abpositive and negative cases include older onset age, higher proportion of female, low frequency of conus involvement and higher prevalence of coexisting autoimmune disorders in AQP4-Ab positive cases. Therewas no difference in attack severity, onset of optic neuritis, and spasms between the two groups. Our results suggest that the clinical and spinal cord neuro-imaging information can aid in distinguishing between the positive and negative group of patients with LETM. The early detection of AQP4-Ab positive status predicts the recurrence of LETM or occurrence of optic neuritis duringthe study period.