Association Between the Multiple Sclerosis Epidemic and Socioeconomic Status in Iran: A Descriptiveanalytical Cross-sectional Study

Background: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a key neurogenic cause of disability among young populations. Assessing the parameters affecting MS severity is vital to reduce the disease burden. This study aimed to determine the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and MS severity among young Iranian adults. Methods: A descriptive-analytical cross-sectional study was conducted on 180 patients (142 females and 38 males) with MS selected by non-probability and consecutive sampling during September 2018-2019. The socio-demographic and primary clinical data were collected by a self-developed questionnaire and face-to-face interviews, respectively. The Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) was used to assess the physical disability and overall neurological function of patients. Results: The mean age of patients and MS onset were 27.54 and 35.58 years, respectively. The majority of patients were married (68.3%) and lived in cities (74.4%). The mean values of unemployment, homeownership, and monthly income were 54.4%, 71.7%, and 11,078,330 IRR, respectively. The mean EDSS was 2.80±1.79 points. A weak positive correlation was found between EDSS and patients' age (P = 0.001, r = 0.246) and number of children (P = 0.001, r = 0.250). There was no significant difference between EDSS and SES factors (i.e., disease onset age, treatment cost, and monthly income). Conclusions: As SES was not related to MS severity, there is no need to take special treatment measures in patients with poor SES.