Neuroimmunological Diagnostic Tests

Abstract

This chapter discusses diagnostic tests commonly used by neuroimmunologists which are specialized for use in inflammatory and infectious diseases. These are generally assays of the blood or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), two bodily fluids readily accessible to the clinician. We will not discuss the standard neurological tests performed by neurologists in evaluating neurological disease, such as the history, examination, imaging of the brain by MRI or CT scanning, electroencephalography, electromyography, nerve conduction studies, or evoked responses, which are discussed in Chap. 2. Consistent with its strong link to basic research, much of clinical neuroimmunology is dependent on laboratory assays. Researchers are constantly trying to move assays developed in research laboratories into the clinical arena, albeit with varying degrees of success. As we have discussed concerning the value of surrogate markers of diseases, it is one thing to be able to demonstrate statistically robust sensitivity and specificity of a test for some aspect of disease, but it is another thing entirely to establish the clinical relevance of that finding. This means the clinical neuroimmunologist must have a firm understanding of the laboratory assays used in the field.