Visual evoked potentials in multiple sclerosis before and after two years of interferon therapy

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is important in the diagnosis of and follow-up for the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS); evoked potentials may be important if MRI is normal or cannot be performed. We assessed serial visual evoked potentials (VEPs) and cranial MRI in a group of clinically relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (N = 15) treated with interferon beta-lb (INFB-1b) and in normal subjects (N = 15). The investigations were done I week before INFB-lb therapy, 1 year later (N = 15), and 2 years later (N = 10). VEPs were abnormal in most of the patients; MRIs were abnormal in all patients. We used P100 latency as an electrophysiological index for the progress of illness. There were significant differences in VEPs between the beginning and ending of the interferon treatment. We concluded that VEPs would be a reliable index for following up the progress of MS under interferon therapy.