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.