Multiple sclerosis and related disorders among children

Event Notes:

The event entitled Multiple sclerosis and related disorders among children: updates on diagnosis, treatment and outcome, will be held in residential mode in Ferrara on 24 and 25 September 2026.

The course is aimed at the following professional figures: Medical Surgeon (accredited disciplines: Infectious Diseases, Neurology, Pediatrics, Psychiatry, Rheumatology, Ophthalmology, Otolaryngology, Pathological Anatomy, Clinical Biochemistry, Microbiology and Virology, Neurophysiopathology, Neuroradiology).

Demyelinating inflammatory diseases of the central nervous system (multiple sclerosis and optic neuromyelitis) can also affect subjects under the age of 18. Approximately 5% of multiple sclerosis cases represent a pediatric form, characterized by symptoms similar to the adult form, but often by a multifocal and aggressive clinical onset in relation to more marked inflammatory mechanisms than in the adult.

There are at least four reasons that induce clinicians and researchers to deepen the topic of the demyelinating disease of the central nervous system in the child with respect to the forms of the adult: (1) the complexity of the differential diagnosis compared to other pathologies (e.g., infectious, from accumulation, genetics), (2) the involvement of the central nervous system in the developmental age with consequent possible impact on cognitive development, (3) the reduced availability of therapeutic options compared to adult form (e.g.) The management of the small patient suffering from multiple sclerosis or optic neuromyelitis should therefore be relegated to specialist centres and a multidisciplinary approach coordinated by neuropediatricians and experienced neurologists.

The Conference sees the participation of experts on the topic of demyelinating inflammatory diseases of the central nervous system in the pediatric age of national and international fame, representing a unique opportunity for a clinical-diagnostic-therapeutic point outing and a scientific update on the subject. Finally, psycho-social and organizational aspects around these diseases will also be addressed.