1Research Institute, Seoul Medical Center; 2Department of Neurology, Seoul Medical Center, Seoul, Korea
Neuromyelitis optica (NMO) is another idiopathic, severe demyelinating disease that preferentially
involves optic nerves and spinal cord. NMO has been frequently misclassified as multiple sclerosis
(MS) previously due to its similar clinical presentation. However, growing knowledge of NMO enables
clinician to differentiate it from MS by clinical, laboratory (especially by presence of aquaporin-
4 antibodies), neuroimaging, and pathological characteristics. In 2014-2015, there were striking
efforts to integrate the knowledge of NMO and to suggest more sensitive and accurate diagnostic
criteria by international panel. In this review, we summarized recently obtained knowledge of NMO
focusing its clinical and laboratory findings, therapy and highlighted the new diagnostic criteria for
NMO, 2015.
Journal of Multiple Sclerosis 7(1):1-8, 2016
