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Does low socioeconomic status in early life protect against multiple sclerosis? A multinational, case-control study
R Goulden1, T Riise2, K-M Myhr3,4
1Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Occupational Health, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.
European Journal of Neurology
|October 18, 2015
Summary
Socioeconomic status (SES) and multiple sclerosis (MS) risk show inconsistent associations across countries. A protective effect of lower SES was observed only in Canada, suggesting geographical variations in MS risk factors.
Area of Science:
- Epidemiology
- Neurology
- Public Health
Background:
- Existing research on socioeconomic status (SES) and multiple sclerosis (MS) presents inconsistent findings.
- Previous studies often lack multinational scope and fail to account for confounding risk factors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between early life SES and MS risk.
- To analyze this relationship across Norway, Canada, and Italy using multinational data.
Main Methods:
- Utilized data from the Environmental Risk Factors in Multiple Sclerosis (EnvIMS) case-control study.
- Included 2144 MS cases and 3859 controls.
- Employed multiple logistic regression, adjusting for age, sex, sunlight exposure, infectious mononucleosis history, smoking, obesity, and family size.
Main Results:
- In Canada, higher parental education was associated with increased MS risk (OR 1.45, 95% CI 1.03-2.05; P trend 0.030).
- In Norway, no significant association was found (OR 1.09, 95% CI 0.85-1.39; P trend 0.395).
- In Italy, a potential protective effect of lower SES was observed (OR 0.65, 95% CI 0.39-1.07; P trend 0.158).
Conclusions:
- No consistent association between parental SES and MS risk was identified across Norway, Canada, and Italy.
- A potential protective effect of lower SES was noted exclusively in the Canadian cohort.
- Geographical variations may influence the relationship between SES and MS risk.
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