Multiple sclerosis is a disease characterized by chronic, inflammatory demyelination of the central nervous system. It is the most common neurological disease in young adults that causes morbidity. . MS is most common between the ages of 20-40. It is rarely detected before the age of 10 and after the age of 60. It is more common in women than in men, and the female male rate is 2-3/1.
In this study, we wanted to investigate whether there is a difference between gender and the regions leading to the first clinical attack symptom known to affect prognosis. The study was planned as cross-sectional, 250 patients over the age of 18 who were followed up in the spectrum of MS and diagnosis of MS in Kocaeli University Faculty of Medicine Neurology Outpatient Clinic were included. Approval was obtained from Kocaeli University Faculty of Medicine Ethics Committee for the study. The patients participating in the study were informed about the study and an informed consent form was signed.
In this study, we wanted to investigate whether there is a difference between gender and the regions leading to the first clinical attack symptom known to affect prognosis. The study was planned as cross-sectional, 250 patients over the age of 18 who were followed up in the spectrum of MS and diagnosis of MS in Kocaeli University Faculty of Medicine Neurology Outpatient Clinic were included.
Of the 250 patients included in the study, 181 were female (72.4%) and 69 (27.6%) were male. While the average age of female patients was 38.20 ± 10.74; The mean age of male patients was 37.93 ± 10.67. There was no significant difference between the mean age of the patients. (P = 0.885). The first attack symptoms of 92 (38.7%) patients included in the study were due to supratentorial lesions. In other patients, it was due to 32.4% brainstem involvement, 22.3% optic nerve involvement and 6.7% spinal region involvement, respectively. Since 12 patients had radiological isolated syndrome, there was no first attack symptom. Relations between numerical variables were evaluated by Spearman correlation analysis, and relationships between categorical variables were evaluated by Chi-square analysis. p <0.05 was considered statistically sufficient for significance.
In our study, a significant relationship was found between gender and the region where the first attack symptom depends. (p value: p = 0.007) While the region where the first attack symptom is most frequently associated with female patients is 42% supratentorial, male patients have a brain stem with 40.6%. The region that has the least cause of first attack symptoms is the spinal region in both groups. We concluded that the disease has a worse prognosis in patients with brainstem involvement, male gender-brainstem involvement becomes statistically significant.