OBJECTIVE: To determine whether the incidence of multiple sclerosis (MS) varies by race/ethnicity in a multiethnic, population-based cohort. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of more than 9 million person-years of observation from the multiethnic, community-dwelling members of Kaiser Permanente Southern California health plan from January 1, 2008 to December 31, 2010. Incidence of MS and risk ratios comparing incidence rates between racial/ethnic groups were calculated using Poisson regression. RESULTS: We identified 496 patients newly diagnosed with MS who met McDonald criteria. The average age at diagnosis was 41.6 years (range 8.6-78.3 years) and 70.2% were women. The female preponderance was more pronounced among black (79.3%) than white, Hispanic, and Asian individuals with MS (67.8%, 68.1%, and 69.2%, respectively; p = 0.03). The incidence of MS was higher in blacks (10.2, 95% confidence interval [CI] 8.4-12.4; p < 0.0001) and lower in Hispanics (2.9, 95% CI 2.4-3.5; p < 0.0001) and Asians (1.4, 95% CI 0.7-2.4; p < 0.0001) than whites (6.9, 95% CI 6.1-7.8). Black women had a higher risk of MS (risk ratio 1.59, 95% CI 1.27-1.99; p = 0.0005) whereas black men had a similar risk of MS (risk ratio 1.04, 95% CI = 0.67-1.57) compared with whites. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings do not support the widely accepted assertion that blacks have a lower risk of MS than whites. A possible explanation for our findings is that people with darker skin tones have lower vitamin D levels and thereby an increased risk of MS, but this would not explain why Hispanics and Asians have a lower risk of MS than whites or why the higher risk of MS among blacks was found only among women.
OBJECTIVE: To determine whether the incidence of multiple sclerosis (MS) varies by race/ethnicity in a multiethnic, population-based cohort. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of more than 9 million person-years of observation from the multiethnic, community-dwelling members of Kaiser Permanente Southern California health plan from January 1, 2008 to December 31, 2010. Incidence of MS and risk ratios comparing incidence rates between racial/ethnic groups were calculated using Poisson regression. RESULTS: We identified 496 patients newly diagnosed with MS who met McDonald criteria. The average age at diagnosis was 41.6 years (range 8.6-78.3 years) and 70.2% were women. The female preponderance was more pronounced among black (79.3%) than white, Hispanic, and Asian individuals with MS (67.8%, 68.1%, and 69.2%, respectively; p = 0.03). The incidence of MS was higher in blacks (10.2, 95% confidence interval [CI] 8.4-12.4; p < 0.0001) and lower in Hispanics (2.9, 95% CI 2.4-3.5; p < 0.0001) and Asians (1.4, 95% CI 0.7-2.4; p < 0.0001) than whites (6.9, 95% CI 6.1-7.8). Black women had a higher risk of MS (risk ratio 1.59, 95% CI 1.27-1.99; p = 0.0005) whereas black men had a similar risk of MS (risk ratio 1.04, 95% CI = 0.67-1.57) compared with whites. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings do not support the widely accepted assertion that blacks have a lower risk of MS than whites. A possible explanation for our findings is that people with darker skin tones have lower vitamin D levels and thereby an increased risk of MS, but this would not explain why Hispanics and Asians have a lower risk of MS than whites or why the higher risk of MS among blacks was found only among women.
Authors: Noriko Isobe; Lohith Madireddy; Pouya Khankhanian; Takuya Matsushita; Stacy J Caillier; Jayaji M Moré; Pierre-Antoine Gourraud; Jacob L McCauley; Ashley H Beecham; Laura Piccio; Joseph Herbert; Omar Khan; Jeffrey Cohen; Lael Stone; Adam Santaniello; Bruce A C Cree; Suna Onengut-Gumuscu; Stephen S Rich; Stephen L Hauser; Stephen Sawcer; Jorge R Oksenberg Journal: Brain Date: 2015-03-28 Impact factor: 13.501
Authors: Natalia Gonzalez Caldito; Shiv Saidha; Elias S Sotirchos; Blake E Dewey; Norah J Cowley; Jeffrey Glaister; Kathryn C Fitzgerald; Omar Al-Louzi; James Nguyen; Alissa Rothman; Esther Ogbuokiri; Nicholas Fioravante; Sydney Feldman; Ohemaa Kwakyi; Hunter Risher; Dorlan Kimbrough; Teresa C Frohman; Elliot Frohman; Laura Balcer; Ciprian Crainiceanu; Peter C M Van Zijl; Ellen M Mowry; Daniel S Reich; Jiwon Oh; Dzung L Pham; Jerry Prince; Peter A Calabresi Journal: Brain Date: 2018-11-01 Impact factor: 13.501
Authors: Nadina B Lincoln; Lucy E Bradshaw; Cris S Constantinescu; Florence Day; Avril Er Drummond; Deborah Fitzsimmons; Shaun Harris; Alan A Montgomery; Roshan das Nair Journal: Health Technol Assess Date: 2020-01 Impact factor: 4.014