Can coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) trigger exacerbation of multiple sclerosis? A retrospective study

Mahdi Barzegar; Saeed Vaheb; Omid Mirmosayyeb; Alireza Afshari-Safavi; Nasim Nehzat; Vahid Shaygannejad

doi:10.1016/j.msard.2021.102947

Can coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) trigger exacerbation of multiple sclerosis? A retrospective study

Mult Scler Relat Disord. 2021 Jul:52:102947. doi: 10.1016/j.msard.2021.102947. Epub 2021 Apr 11.

Authors

Mahdi Barzegar¹, Saeed Vaheb², Omid Mirmosayyeb¹, Alireza Afshari-Safavi³, Nasim Nehzat⁴, Vahid Shaygannejad⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran; Isfahan Neurosciences Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran.
² Isfahan Neurosciences Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran; Student Research Committee, Faculty of Paramedicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran.
³ Isfahan Neurosciences Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran; Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Faculty of Health, North Khorasan University of Medical Sciences, Bojnurd, Iran.
⁴ Isfahan Neurosciences Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran.
⁵ Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran; Isfahan Neurosciences Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran. Electronic address: shaygannejad@med.mui.ac.ir.

Abstract

The effect of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on the risk of relapse in multiple sclerosis (MS) have been unknown. In this retrospective study of 41 relapsing-remitting MS patients, number of relapses in pre-defined at risk-period (ARP) was compared with the previous two years. During the previous two years, a total of 32 attacks was reported, which 5 (15.6%) were during the at-risk period. After adjusting for age and sex, there was an increased risk of attack during ARP compared to the previous two years (RR: 2.566, 95%CI: 1.075-6.124, P=0.034). Our preliminary study suggested that COVID-19 can trigger exacerbation of MS.

Keywords: Coronavirus; Exacerbation; Infection; Multiple sclerosis; Relapse.

MeSH terms

COVID-19*
Humans
Multiple Sclerosis*
Multiple Sclerosis, Relapsing-Remitting*
Recurrence
Retrospective Studies
SARS-CoV-2