Table 2.
Clinical relevance of sNfL and sGFAP in AQP4-antibody-positive NMOSD examined by univariate and multivariate regression models.
| Clinical parameter (Number of samples) | sNfL (pg/mL) | sGFAP (pg/mL) | Univariate(sNfL) | Multivariate(sNfL) | Univariate(sGFAP) | Multivariate(sGFAP) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Median (IQR) | Median (IQR) | β | 95%CI | p-value | β | 95%CI | p-value | β | 95%CI | p-value | β | 95%CI | p-value | |
| Age at sampling (51) | – | – | 1.79 | 1.75–1.82 | 0.551 | 1.17 | 0.90–1.49 | 0.612 | 1.52 | 1.46–1.58 | 0.561 | 1.00 | 0.68–1.46 | 0.867 |
| Sex | ||||||||||||||
| Female (44) | 16.0 (8.6–48.1) | 247.8 (109.2–1793.2) | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||||
| Male (7) | 46.9 (26.9–51.1) | 315.4 (119.3–605.0) | 1.83 | 0.67–4.95 | 0.256 | – | – | 1.52 | 0.33–4.48 | 0.615 | – | – | ||
| EDSS score at sampling (51) | – | – | 1.87 | 1.52–2.27 | 0.016 | 1.88 | 1.49–2.22 | 0.018 | 2.45 | 1.69–3.67 | 0.021 | 2.04 | 1.53–2.69 | 0.032 |
| Disease duration (51) | – | – | 0.96 | 0.95–0.96 | 0.486 | – | – | 0.84 | 0.74–0.99 | 0.542 | – | – | ||
| Recent relapse (<60 d) | ||||||||||||||
| Yes (37) | 22.6 (10.5–50.1) | 284.4 (133.8–2144.4) | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||||
| No (14) | 13.0 (7.6–40.7) | 147.1 (65.0–436.7) | 1.81 | 0.82–3.32 | 0.090 | – | – | 2.76 | 2.69–3.00 | 0.064 | – | – | ||
| Spinal cord lesion in MRI during recent relapse | ||||||||||||||
| Yes (35) | 26.0 (13.3–50.0) | 292.8 (145.5–2284.0) | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||||
| No (16) | 11.5 (6.4–28.8) | 149.6 (65.7–338.4) | 1.65 | 0.86–3.16 | 0.138 | – | – | 3.29 | 2.11–5.16 | 0.022 | 5.30 | 4.95–6.43 | 0.008 | |
| Brain lesion in MRI during recent relapse | ||||||||||||||
| Yes (16) | 27.1 (20.2–27.7) | 388.9 (179.2–2523.6) | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||||
| No (35) | 13.4 (7.3–49.6) | 159.6 (100.1–540.9) | 1.75 | 1.49–2.01 | 0.094 | – | – | 2.27 | 0.83–5.47 | 0.121 | – | – | ||
| Treatment at sampling | ||||||||||||||
| Treated (38) | 21.2 (8.8–51.4) | 203.7 (128.2–466.4) | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||||
| No treatment (13) | 15.8 (10.4–33.5) | 579.9 (97.9–4769.5) | 1.53 | 0.74–3.00 | 0.238 | – | – | 1.89 | 0.65–4.44 | 0.261 | – | – | ||
sNfL, serum neurofilament light; sGFAP, serum glial fibrillary acidic protein; AQP4, aquaporin 4; NMOSD, neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders; IQR, interquartile range; CI: confidence interval; EDSS, Expanded Disability Status Scale; MRI, magnetic resonance imaging. Estimates described in this table used the original scales (β). Treated means usage of steroid and/or immunosuppressant (includes oral immunosuppressant and rituximab). The p-values lower than 0.05 are in bold type.