Men's health research priorities in men with multiple sclerosis

Men with multiple sclerosis (MwMS) experience distinct health, symptoms, and disease progression patterns compared to women, necessitating targeted research and clinical approaches.

We aimed to evaluate the perceived relative importance of topics in men's health for future research in this area and sought to understand research priorities and sources of information among MwMS.

In a cross-sectional survey, male participants in the North American Research Committee on Multiple Sclerosis (NARCOMS) Registry ranked research priorities among 14 men's health-specific topics. The online survey contained additional questions on information-seeking behavior and preferences, adapted from the 2007 Health Information National Trends survey. Multivariate linear regression examined factors associated with topic rankings.

Of 8567 participants invited, 5098 (59.3%) responded, of whom 896 were males; 775 were included. Sexual function/dysfunction ranked as the highest priority men's health topics followed by prostate cancer/cancer screening, benign prostatic hyperplasia, and low testosterone. These topics were the most frequently searched topics by participants, and the most frequent source used was mass media.

We identified priority research topics for men's health issues in MS from the perspective of MwMS. Continued engagement of MwMS as partners in refining research questions and communicating results will ensure the outcomes remain relevant to those who seek them.