Cerebrospinal Fluid Magnesium Level in Different Neurological Disorders

Carl-Albrecht Haensch

Department of Neurology, University of Witten/Herdecke, HELIOS Klinikum Wuppertal, Germany.

DOI: 10.4236/nm.2010.12009                

Abstract

Magnesium (Mg) is an essential cofactor for many enzymatic reactions, especially those involved in energy metabolism. The aim of the present study was to determine the CSF concentration of Mg in various neurological disorders (n = 72) and in healthy subjects (n = 75). The control group included 35 males and 40 females, aged 16-89 years (mean age 53 years) who were subjected to a lumbar puncture for diagnostic reasons. The CSF examination was normal mainly as concerns the macroscopically examination, the leukocyte count and the protein level. The determination of Mg was performed with xylidyl-blue photometry. Our normal CSF Mg mean value was 0.97 ± 0.08 mmol/l (range 0.6-1.4 mmol/l). In the group of patients (n = 11) with convulsive seizures a slightly but significantly lower Mg were revealed (0.92 ± 0.03 mmol/l; p = 0.001; paired two-tailed Student’s t-tests). No statistically significant change of CSF Mg levels was noted in patients suffering from alcohol withdrawal syndrome, multiple sclerosis or Bell’s palsy. Our results indi-cate that magnesium deficiency may play a role for seizure manifestation even in patients with a moderate low Mg without neurological signs. Low CSF magnesium is associated with epilepsy, further studies may determine the influ-ence of anti-epileptic drug therapy on CSF magnesium levels.

Keywords

Magnesium, Cerebrospinal Fluid, Seizures, Epilepsy

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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