NMOSD and MS prevalence in the Indigenous populations of Australia and New Zealand

Wajih Bukhari; Elham Khalilidehkordi; Deborah F Mason; Michael H Barnett; Bruce V Taylor; Marzena Fabis-Pedrini; Allan G Kermode; Sankar Subramanian; Patrick Waters; Simon A Broadley; Australian and New Zealand NMO Collaboration

doi:10.1007/s00415-021-10665-9

NMOSD and MS prevalence in the Indigenous populations of Australia and New Zealand

J Neurol. 2022 Feb;269(2):836-845. doi: 10.1007/s00415-021-10665-9. Epub 2021 Jul 2.

Authors

Collaborators

Australian and New Zealand NMO Collaboration:
Wajih Bukhari, Elham Khalilidehkordi, Deborah F Mason, Michael H Barnett, Bruce V Taylor, Marzena Fabis-Pedrini, Allan G Kermode, Sankar Subramanian, Patrick Waters, Simon A Broadley, David Abernethy, Sandeep Bhuta, Stefan Blum, Mike Boggild, Karyn Boundy, Bruce J Brew, Fabienne Brilot, Wallace J Brownlee, Christine S Bundell, Helmut Butzkueven, William M Carroll, Celia Chen, Laura Clarke, Alan Coulthard, Russell C Dale, Chandi Das, Keith Dear, David Fulcher, David Gillis, Simon Hawke, Robert Heard, Andrew P D Henderson, Saman Heshmat, Suzanne Hodgkinson, Sofia Jimenez Sanchez, Trevor J Kilpatrick, John King, Chris Kneebone, Andrew J Kornberg, Jeannette Lechner-Scott, Ming-Wei Lin, Chistopher Lynch, Richard A L Macdonell, Mark P Marriott, Pamela A McCombe, Cullen O'Gorman, John D E Parratt, Michael P Pender, Jennifer Pereira, John D Pollard, Kerri M Prain, Sudarshini Ramanathan, Stephen W Reddell, Cameron Shaw, Roger A Silvestrini, Mark Slee, Judith Spies, James Stankovich, Ian Sutton, Angela Vincent, Steve Vucic, Michael Walsh, Ernest Willoughby, Richard C Wong, Mark Woodhall, Eppie M Yiu

Affiliations

¹ Menzies Health Institute Queensland, School of Medicine, Griffith University, Gold Coast Campus, Brisbane, QLD, 4222, Australia.
² Department of Neurology, Gold Coast University Hospital, Southport, QLD, 4215, Australia.
³ New Zealand Brain Research Institute, Christchurch, 8011, New Zealand.
⁴ Department of Medicine, University of Otago, Christchurch, 8011, New Zealand.
⁵ Department of Neurology, Canterbury District Health Board, Christchurch, 8041, New Zealand.
⁶ Brain and Mind Centre, University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW, 2006, Australia.
⁷ Menzies Institute for Medical Research, University of Tasmania,, Hobart, TAS, 7000, Australia.
⁸ Department of Neurology, Royal Hobart Hospital, Hobart, TAS, 7000, Australia.
⁹ Peron Institute, University of Western Australia, Nedlands, WA, 6009, Australia.
¹⁰ Institute of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Murdoch University, Perth, WA, 6150, Australia.
¹¹ GeneCology Research Centre, University of Sunshine Coast, Sippy Downs, QLD, 4556, Australia.
¹² Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, John Radcliffe Infirmary, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK.
¹³ Menzies Health Institute Queensland, School of Medicine, Griffith University, Gold Coast Campus, Brisbane, QLD, 4222, Australia. simon.broadley@griffith.edu.au.
¹⁴ Department of Neurology, Gold Coast University Hospital, Southport, QLD, 4215, Australia. simon.broadley@griffith.edu.au.

PMID: 34213614
DOI: 10.1007/s00415-021-10665-9

Abstract

Background: We studied the prevalence of neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) and multiple sclerosis (MS) in Indigenous populations of Australia and New Zealand with the aim of assessing potential differences.

Methods: Cases of possible NMOSD and MS were collected from Australia and New Zealand. Clinical details, MR imaging, and serologic results were used to apply 2015 IPND diagnostic criteria for NMOSD and 2010 McDonald criteria for MS. Frequencies of self-determined ethnic ancestry were calculated for confirmed NMOSD, suspected NMOSD, and MS. Prevalence rates for NMOSD and MS according to ancestry were compared.

Results: There were 75 cases with NMOSD, 89 with suspected NMSOD, and 101 with MS. NMOSD cases were more likely to have Asian, Indigenous, or Other ancestry compared to suspected NMOSD or MS. There were no differences in the clinical phenotype of NMOSD seen in Indigenous compared to European ancestry populations. Per 100,000, the prevalence estimate for NMOSD in people with Māori ancestry was 1.50 (95% CI 0.52-2.49) which was similar to those with Asian ancestry 1.57 (95% CI 1.15-1.98). NMOSD prevalence in Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations was 0.38 (95% CI 0.00-0.80) per 100,000.

Conclusion: The prevalence of NMOSD in the Māori population is similar to South East Asian countries, reflecting their historical origins. The prevalence of MS in this group is intermediate between those with South East Asian and European ancestry living in New Zealand. Both NMOSD and particularly MS appear to be uncommon in the Indigenous populations of Australia.

Keywords: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander; Aquaporin; Genetics; Māori; Neuromyelitis optica.

MeSH terms

Australia / epidemiology
Humans
Indigenous Peoples
Multiple Sclerosis* / epidemiology
Neuromyelitis Optica* / epidemiology
New Zealand / epidemiology
Prevalence

Grants and funding

11-038/Multiple Sclerosis Research Australia