The conference we propose is entitled """"""""Neuroimaging of MS - State-of-the-art and Future Directions"""""""" and will be held on Friday and Saturday, November 6 and 7, 2009 in Washington DC. This conference is relevant to the missions of both the NINDS and NIBIB. The target audience is interdisciplinary: PhD and MD (radiology and neurology) experts in the fields of multiple sclerosis (MS) imaging and management. MS is a chronic disease afflicting the central nervous system (CNS) of young adults and can last decades. MR methods therefore are ideally suited for its study due to their ability to image non-invasively CNS tissue, metabolism and function. MS is studied by PhD's who develop imaging technologies, neuro-radiologists who apply them and neurologists who treat the patients and design treatment trials. This conference is designed, therefore, (1) to acquaint these three diverse groups with the current state-of-the-art MR technology for MS;(2) to identify the techniques that are most likely to become suitable for routine clinical application;and (3) to reach a consensus as to which critical steps are needed to expedite and foster this translation. This would ultimately result in improved care and outcomes for a greater number of MS patients (400,000 currently in the US and 2.5 million worldwide). The conference will span two days. The first day will consist of a series of overview presentations introducing the current state-of-the-art MR imaging of the brain and spine in MS and then focus on the clinical applications in this disease. The second day will commence with one additional series of overview presentations focusing on the current """"""""most ambitious """"""""art, followed by three concurrent workshops. Each workshop will be offered twice to enable attendees to participate in more than one. The workshops will each discuss one of the three most advance imaging modalities - """"""""Molecular imaging"""""""", """"""""Quantitative MRI"""""""" and """"""""MR at the extremes"""""""" (high magnetic fields, difficult CNS regions). For each of the three areas addressed, three sets of recommendations will be clearly stated at the end: 1) Which method(s) is/are most likely to be ready for clinical use within the next 5 years. 2) What the researchers should do to help address the issues raised during the discussions regarding that topic in order to expedite this transition;and 3) what could the NIH do in terms of requests for applications (RFAs). These recommendations will constitute the core of the proceedings from the meeting, and will be published concurrently in the American Journal of Neuroradiology and in Multiple Sclerosis. The organizing committee endeavored to ensure a diversity among the invited speakers who comprise a mix of established and junior clinical and research scientists from various geographic regions in North America and Europe. Selection of invited junior scientists for whom funding is requested was merit based.
The three goals of the conference are: (1) to acquaint MS researchers and clinicians of different disciplines (PhDs, neuroradiologists and neurologists) with the state-of-the-art MR methodology in multiple sclerosis;(2) to reach a consensus which of these methodologies is both needed and is mature enough (in the laboratory) for translation into the clinical environment;and (3) to determine what is needed to standardize these """"""""ready"""""""" methodologies to foster and expedite this translation. The outcome will be coherent focused progress that will benefit a greater number of MS patients, sooner and ultimately result in improved care and management for the 400,000 MS patients in the US and the over 2.5 million patients worldwide.
