ALCOHOL ABUSE AND CIGARETTE SMOKING ARE RISK FACTORS IN MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS: A CASE–CONTROL STUDY

Background and Aim : Introduction: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic disease of the central nervous system and its prevalence is increasing in Iran. MS usually appears in adults in their late twenties or early thirties. We aimed to discover the potential risk factors associated with cigarette smoking, water-pipe & passive smoking and alcohol consumption in people with MS. Methods : Method: A case–control study was conducted in 2018 in Tehran, Iran. This study was performed amongst MS cases diagnosed by neurologists at Sina hospital, a referral center of MS patients. Controls were matched on sex of cases and provided from residents of Tehran. A structured questionnaire was designed to estimate important environmental exposures including life time & passive cigarette smoking and alcohol abuse for a minimum of 6 months in the MS research center of Tehran University. Logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratio (OR) at 95% confidence intervals (CI) via SPSS 23.Results : Results: A total of 104 patients with MS and 150 healthy controls enrolled in the study. Among all patients, 56 (53.8%) were females. Mean age of disease onset was 35.52 years old. Compared with the control population, in MS cases, the OR for person who had experience of life time cigarette smoking (OR = 2.42), cigarette smoking during adolescence (13-19 years old) )(OR=15.55), current smoking (OR=8.52), passive smoking at home (OR=2.28), passive smoking at work place (OR= 1.86), wine consumption(OR =9), wine consumption(OR= 8) and Whisky/vodka intake (OR= 7.21) has association with an increased risk of MS. There was no association between drug abuse and developing risk of MS (p value> 0.05).Conclusion : Conclusion: The etiology of MS is not well understood, but the unhealthy lifestyle including smoking and alcohol abuse has been identified as potential risk factors for MS. The importance role of life time and passive cigarette smoking and alcohol abuse in risk of MS were observed.

کلیدواژه ها:

Multiple sclerosis ، Risk factor ، Alcohol ، smoking