Multiple sclerosis : A multielement survey.

Levels of 35 elements have been measured in whole blood and ultrasonically washed scalp hair from multiple sclerosis patients and matched control subjects from Oxford, England. Among the significant differences found, the low levels of vanadium and the high levels of barium in the patients were most marked and consistent. Although the etiological significance of the observations is unknown, the low hair-vanadium levels are in qualitative agreement with a previous Canadian report. Hair- and blood-lead levels in the patients and the controls were virtually identical.