When It's Not MS: Inside the Discovery of MOGAD

What happens when multiple sclerosis symptoms mask a different condition?

In this episode of Mayo Clinic’s Tomorrow’s Cure, hosted by Lindsey Seavert, we explore myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibody-associated disease (MOGAD), an autoimmune condition often mistaken for multiple sclerosis (MS). Mayo Clinic neurologist Eoin Flanagan, M.D., B.Ch., and pediatric neurologist Brenda Banwell, M.D., discuss how MOG antibodies define a distinct disease, why early recognition and aggressive treatment of acute attacks are critical, and how MOGAD can present with severe optic neuritis, spinal cord inflammation, and brain involvement such as confusion or seizures. They explain the internationally accepted 2023 diagnostic criteria, which integrate clinical syndromes, MRI findings, and antibody testing while accounting for false positives and changing antibody levels over time. The conversation highlights “vanishing” MRI lesions in MOGAD, patient-driven research, emerging relapse-prevention trials, and therapeutic promise in targeting pathways such as IL-6.

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