Synopsis

Demyelinating disorders of childhood include a broad range of conditions such as acute disseminated encephalomyelitis, optic neuritis, transverse myelitis, and multiple sclerosis (MS). When children present with a first demyelinating event, parents often ask the question: ‘Does my child have MS’? This Grand Round will review the clinical presentation of paediatric demyelinating disorders, the risk factors for and diagnosis of MS, and how changing treatment paradigms and multidisciplinary care are improving long term outcomes.

Speaker

Dr Eppie Yiu is a paediatric neurologist at The Royal Children’s Hospital and honorary research fellow at the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute and the University of Melbourne. She is the current head of the multidisciplinary neuromuscular program and co-leads the paediatric demyelination program at The Royal Children’s Hospital, which is the only one of its kind in Australia. Dr Yiu’s clinical and research interests include demyelinating and neuromuscular disorders of childhood, establishment of best practice guidelines and clinical trials. She has more than 60 publications in peer reviewed journals and books and is an investigator on multiple clinical trials in demyelinating and neuromuscular disorders.