COVID-19 Among Patients With Multiple Sclerosis: A Systematic Review

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Infectious Diseases
• Epidemiology

Background:

• Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic neurological condition.
• The impact of COVID-19 on MS patients requires thorough investigation.
• Understanding risk factors and outcomes is crucial for patient care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review and synthesize existing literature on COVID-19 in patients with multiple sclerosis.
• To identify demographic, clinical characteristics, and outcomes of MS patients diagnosed with COVID-19.
• To assess the relationship between disease-modifying therapies and COVID-19 outcomes in MS.

Main Methods:

• Comprehensive literature search across multiple databases (PubMed, Scopus, EMBASE, etc.) from December 2019 to December 2020.
• Inclusion of all study types reporting on patients with MS and COVID-19.
• Systematic review and data extraction from 87 eligible studies involving 4,310 patients.

Main Results:

• Fever, cough, fatigue, and shortness of breath were the most common COVID-19 symptoms in MS patients.
• Overall mortality rate for COVID-19 in MS patients was 3.0%.
• Patients with no disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) exhibited higher hospitalization (42.9%) and mortality (8.4%) rates compared to those on DMTs.

Conclusions:

• Multiple sclerosis itself may not significantly increase COVID-19 mortality.
• Patients with MS not receiving DMTs had worse COVID-19 outcomes.
• Findings should be interpreted cautiously due to demographic differences between the MS cohort and the general population.