Misconceptions about multiple sclerosis and pregnancy in the Qassim region in 2021-2022: a cross-sectional study

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a disease with higher female prevalence, and the majority of patients are of childbearing age. Thus, pregnancy concerns are important for patients with MS and their families. Improving the understanding of the effects of pregnancy on the progress of MS could improve the knowledge about pregnancy-related issues in MS patients. The aim of this study is to evaluate the general knowledge of Saudi adults living in the Qassim region regarding pregnancy-related relapses in relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) and to identify misconceptions regarding pregnancy, breastfeeding, and the use of oral hormonal contraceptives among female MS patients.

A representative random cluster sample of 337 participants was used in this cross-sectional study. All participants were living in one of the following cities in the Qassim region: Buraydah, Unaizah, and Alrrass. Data collection was done between February 2022 and March 2022 using a self-administered questionnaire.

The overall mean knowledge score was 7.42 (SD 4.21), with poor, moderate, and good knowledge representing 77.2%, 187%, and 4.2% of the sample, respectively. Higher knowledge scores were associated with age less than 40 years, being a student, knowing about MS, and knowing someone with MS. Other variables such as gender, educational level, and residence location did not show significant differences regarding the knowledge score.

Our results demonstrate that knowledge and attitude are suboptimal among the Qassim population regarding the effects of MS on pregnant patients, pregnancy outcomes, breastfeeding, and usage of contraceptive methods, with 77.2% showing poor total knowledge scores.