Multiple sclerosis in Jordan and Iraq. Clinical and social overview

OBJECTIVE: To verify clinical features of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients throughout the course of their illness and to study the socioeconomic status of MS patients in Jordan and Iraq.

METHODS: Fifty-two patients were examined by 2 neurologists looking for the clinical and radiological features of MS at Al-Bashir Teaching Hospital, Amman, Jordan (35 patients), and Rezgary Teaching Hospital-Erbil, Kurdistan, Iraq (17 patients) from January 2004 to July 2007. The study design was based on full clinical examination of MS patients, investigate the signs, and symptoms, tabulating them, and show the percentage of their presence in all patients, and then comparing the results with other findings through systematic review of the available data from other reviews.

RESULTS: The percentage of different symptoms, signs, and radiological features of the 52 MS patients were recorded. Weakness in one limb, mostly the leg (90.4%) was the most common symptom described by our patients, while hyperreflexia was the most prominent sign in MS patients (75%). Higher level of school performance, and moderate to good socioeconomic status were the common status between MS patients. The MRI results were interpreted according to the anatomical sites, and according to different MRI sequences, and the MRI showed MS plaques in almost all patients.

CONCLUSION: This study showed comparable findings with other studies, except nystagmus, which was less observed in Jordanian and Iraqi patients.