The effect of interferon beta on quality of life in patients with multiple sclerosis: A systematic review and...

Background: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is one of the most common progressive neurological disorders affecting young adults. This study aimed to perform a meta-analysis on the effect of interferon beta (IFN-β) on the quality of life (QOL) of patients with MS. Methods: Using valid keywords and searching through databases like Medlib, ScienceDirect, PubMed, etc., 10 articles published between 1999 and 2020 were collected. The inclusion criteria were developed based on clinical guidelines, focusing on studies involving adults with MS treated with IFN-β, with outcomes measuring QOL. The exclusion criteria included studies not in English, those involving pediatric populations, or those lacking a control group. In the reviewed studies, 14 scales of QOL were measured at the beginning and the end of treatment with IFN-β. The data were analyzed using the random effects model meta-analysis method with R software and Stata software. Publication bias was not significant. Heterogeneity was evaluated using the Q test and the I² index. In heterogeneous studies, subgroup analysis and meta-regression were used for meta-analysis. The random-effect model was used for analyses with I² of more than 50%. Results: A total number of 1320 people with an average age of 32.40 ± 8.77 years were included in this study. On average, there was a slight decline in energy and satisfaction with sexual function scales (SSF), while a slight improvement was seen in the other 12 scales, following the treatment with IFN-β. However, no significant changes were observed in any of the QOL scales following treatment, except for health distress (HD) (P < 0.001), role limitation due to physical problems (RLPP) (P < 0.001), and role limitation due to emotional problems (RLEP) (P = 0.037), all of which showed a slight but natable improvement. The physical and mental components, showed significant increases of 0.189 [95% Confidence interval (CI): 0.083, 0.295, I² = 0%] and 0.221 (95% CI 0.119, 0.324, I² = 0%) in the scores after using IFN-β, respectively. Conclusion: This study's results showed that treatment with IFN-β does not negatively affect the QOL of patients with MS. Moreover, this treatment can slightly improve most QOL scales associated with the disability observed in MS.