Medical Encyclopedia

Medical Encyclopedia

CSF oligoclonal banding - series: Indications

 Indications

CSF oligoclonal banding - series
Illustrations:

  • Normal anatomy
  • Indications
  • Procedure, part 1
  • Procedure, part 2
  • Procedure, part 3
  • Why the test is performed:

    This test helps confirm the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis (MS).

    The laboratory procedure is called CSF electrophoresis, which is a method used to study the levels of protein in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).

    In electrophoresis, a CSF sample is applied to a gel (solid medium allowing the movement of proteins), and a voltage is applied. The proteins migrate along the gel based on their charge (roughly on their size). The gel is stained, and significant amounts of similar proteins will cause a visible "band" to be present. The term oligoclonal bands refers the presence in CSF of two or more protein bands of a specific immunoglobin (IgG) that have greater intensity than in the concurrent serum sample. This pattern of banding is seen in patients with MS, and other conditions.

    Update Date: 4/30/2007

    Updated by: Joseph V. Campellone, M.D., Division of Neurology, Cooper University Hospital, Camden, NJ. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

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