Advanced brain scans to better understand motor neuron disease

This pilot study is testing whether advanced 7 Tesla MRI brain scans can help doctors better understand and identify motor neuron disease. Researchers want to develop new imaging markers—visible signs on brain scans—that could help diagnose the disease earlier and distinguish between different types of motor neuron disease, such as ALS and Primary Lateral Sclerosis.

Currently, diagnosing motor neuron disease often requires invasive procedures like lumbar puncture, and doctors can't easily tell which type of motor neuron disease someone has or predict how quickly it will progress. This study aims to create a non-invasive imaging approach that could help doctors diagnose the disease sooner, predict outcomes more accurately, and enroll patients in the right clinical trials faster.