Canadian study finds no link between blocked veins, MS

A new Canadian study is casting doubt on the link between blocked neck veins and multiple sclerosis, after finding no difference in the proportion of abnormalities in the veins of MS patients and healthy controls.

The study, published Monday in The Canadian Medical Association Journal, found no link between chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency (CCSVI) and MS.

Using ultrasound and MRI technology, University of Calgary neurologist Dr. Fiona Costello and her colleagues tested the criteria used to diagnose a patient with CCSVI on a group of MS patients and healthy controls.

They compared the ultrasound results of 120 patients and 60 controls and found a "high" proportion of both groups met one or more of the criteria required for a CCSVI diagnosis.

Their results showed that 58 per cent of MS patients and 63 per cent of the healthy controls met one or more of the proposed criteria.

"We detected no differences in the proportion of venous outflow abnormalities between patients with multiple sclerosis and healthy controls," the study's authors conclude.

"Moreover, our study revealed significant methodologic concerns regarding the proposed diagnostic criteria for chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency that challenge their validity."

Dr. Paolo Zamboni first put forth his theory that constricted veins in the head and neck were linked to MS in 2009. Zamboni also postulated that a vein-widening procedure, which he called the "liberation treatment," could improve the symptoms of MS patients.

Since that time, hundreds of MS patients have sought the treatment, often paying to have it done overseas. As well, several studies have examined Zamboni's theory, with many poking holes in his work.

A recent study published last October in The Lancet also found that a narrowing of the veins leading from the brain was just as prevalent in healthy individuals as it was in patients with MS.

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Canadian study finds no link between blocked veins, MS