The burden of multiple sclerosis: a community health survey

• Published in: Health and quality of life outcomes Vol. 6; no. 1; p. 1
• Main Authors: Jones, C Allyson, Pohar, Sheri L, Warren, Sharon, Turpin, Karen V L, Warren, Kenneth G
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BioMed Central Ltd 07.01.2008; BioMed Central; BMC
• Subjects: Activities of Daily Living; Adolescent; Adult; Age Factors; Aged; Analysis; Canada; Care and treatment; Chronic Disease - economics; Cost of Illness; Cross-Sectional Studies; Female; Health Status Indicators; Health Surveys; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Multiple sclerosis; Multiple Sclerosis - psychology; Patient outcomes; Physiological aspects; Quality of Life; Sex Factors; Socioeconomic Factors; Canada
• ISSN: 1477-7525; 1477-7525
• DOI: 10.1186/1477-7525-6-1

Health-related quality of life (HRQL) in persons with multiple sclerosis (MS) who reside within the community relative to the general population is largely unknown. Data from the Canadian Community Health Survey Cycle 1.1 (CCHS 1.1) were used to compare HRQL of persons with MS and the general population. A representative sample of adults (18 years or older) from the cross sectional population health survey, CCHS 1.1, was examined to compare scores on the Health Utilities Index Mark 3 (HUI3), a generic preference-based HRQL measure, of respondents with (n = 302) and without (n = 109,741) MS. Selected sociodemographic covariates were adjusted for in ANCOVA models. Normalized sampling weights and bootstrap variance estimates were used in the analysis. The mean difference in overall HUI3 scores between respondents with and without MS was 0.25 (95% CI: 0.20, 0.31); eight times greater than the clinically important difference. The largest differences in scores were seen with the ambulation (0.26; 95% CI: 0.20, 0.32) and pain attributes (0.14; 95% CI: 0.09, 0.19). Clinically important differences with dexterity and cognition were also observed. While the proportion of the Canadian population with MS is relatively small in comparison to other diseases, the magnitude of the burden is severe relative to the general population.