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. 2013;12(4):136-43.

Epidemiology of multiple sclerosis in Qom: Demographic study in Iran

Saeed Rezaali  1 , Ahad Khalilnezhad, Abdorreza Naser Moghadasi, Samira Chaibakhsh, Mohammad Ali Sahraian
Affiliations

Epidemiology of multiple sclerosis in Qom: Demographic study in Iran

Saeed Rezaali et al. Iran J Neurol. 2013.

Abstract

Background: Recent studies have demonstrated controversial results and somewhat increased frequency of multiple sclerosis (MS). We reevaluated the files of MS patients from Qom Province of Iran in order to investigate the epidemiology of the disease.

Methods: Demographic and clinical records of 592 MS patients were reviewed, which included; age, sex, date of birth, marital and occupation status, presenting symptoms, time of onset, type and family history of MS, and history of autoimmune or other diseases.

Results: At the time of our study, 11 patients had died, and 581 were alive with a total female-to-male ratio of 3.4. The mean age of onset of the disease was 34.25 ± 9.01 for all the patients. 11.2% of patients had positive family history of MS. The majority of patients (80.1%) showed relapsing-remitting (RR) pattern. The prevalence of MS was calculated as 50.4/100000 for Qom.

Conclusion: Qom is located within a high risk zone of MS. Although we found evidences about the role of environmental factors, geographical distribution, and etcetera, many more studies need to be performed in this respect.

Keywords: Demography; Epidemiology; Iran; Multiple Sclerosis; Prevalence.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Frequency of MS according to the season and month of birth of the patients from Qom The patients born in summer and in August were more frequent than other seasons and months
Figure 2
Figure 2
The age of onset of MS among patients from Qom Approximately half of the patients, both women and men, were 21-30 years old when the disease started, while a minority of them was 41-50.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Type of MS among patients from Qom The majority of the patients suffered from relapsing-remitting (RR), both women and men, at the time of registration.
Figure 4
Figure 4
The amount of time of exposure to the sun (minutes/day) among patients from Qom 49.4% and 35.1% of the women, and 25.4% and 32.5% of men were exposed to the sun for 0-10 and 11-30 minutes daily, respectively.
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