Current perspectives on the diagnosis and management of acute transverse myelitis

Abstract

Introduction: Acute transverse myelitis (ATM) is a term that encompasses a wide range of etiologies from immune-mediated to infectious. Management and prognosis differ for each specific etiology, and thus determining the disease-specific diagnosis of ATM is crucial.

Areas covered: The distinguishing clinical, radiologic, serologic, and cerebrospinal fluid features for common etiologies of ATM, such as multiple sclerosis, aquaporin-4-IgG-positive neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (AQP4+NMOSD), myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibody-associated disease (MOGAD), and spinal cord sarcoidosis, are covered. Acute flaccid myelitis variant of ATM is also explored. Red flags suggesting ATM mimics are briefly reviewed. Management of ATM in this review mainly focuses on treatment for immune-mediated causes and is divided into acute treatment, preventive treatment for certain etiologies, and supportive management. Although maintenance attack-prevention treatment for immune-mediated ATM is mainly guided by observational studies and expert opinion, clinical trials have been completed in AQP4+NMOSD and are underway in MOGAD to help provide solid evidence for treatment efficacy.

Expert opinion: The term ATM should be replaced by a disease-specific diagnosis to direct management. Discovery of disease-associated antibodies has changed the landscape of ATM diagnosis and allowed research on disease mechanisms. Translating our knowledge on pathophysiology into targeted therapy with monoclonal antibodies has provided new treatment options for patients.

Keywords: AQP4; MOGAD; autoimmune neurology; biologics; monoclonal antibody; myelopathy; neuromyelitis optica; sarcoidosis; transverse myelitis; treatment.