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Multiple sclerosis in South America: month of birth in different latitudes does not seem to interfere with the prevalence or progression of the disease

Esclerose múltipla na América do Sul: mês de nascimento em diferentes latitudes não parece interferir com a prevalência ou progressão da doença

Objective

To assess whether the month of birth in different latitudes of South America might influence the presence or severity of multiple sclerosis (MS) later in life.

Methods

Neurologists in four South American countries working at MS units collected data on their patients' month of birth, gender, age, and disease progression.

Results

Analysis of data from 1207 MS patients and 1207 control subjects did not show any significant variation in the month of birth regarding the prevalence of MS in four latitude bands (0–10; 11–20; 21–30; and 31–40 degrees). There was no relationship between the month of birth and the severity of disease in each latitude band.

Conclusion

The results from this study show that MS patients born to mothers who were pregnant at different Southern latitudes do not follow the seasonal pattern observed at high Northern latitudes.

South America; multiple sclerosis; sun exposure


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