Chapter 3 - Epidemiology of pediatric multiple sclerosis: incidence, prevalence, and susceptibility risk factors

Summary

Pediatric multiple sclerosis (MS), once considered a rare childhood illness, has been increasingly recognized as a disabling acquired pediatric neurological disease requiring early recognition and intervention. Males get affected with before puberty while females are more often hit around or after puberty. Race, ethnicity, and ancestry may also influence disease susceptibility and course differently. Epidemiological data clearly indicate that adult MS is a geographically related disease, with disease rates rising with an increased distance from the equator in both northern and southern hemispheres. A few candidates have been identified as associated with pediatric MS in a few epidemiological studies (neurotropic viruses, Chlamydia pneumonia, passive smoking). Seroepidemiologic and pathologic evidences have strongly suggested that prior infection with members of the Herpesviridae family may be associated with the development of MS in adulthood. The most studied member of the Herpesviridae family in MS patients has been Epstein-Barr virus (EBV).