Table 1.
Demographic and clinical characteristics of the enrolled participants
| Characteristics | HCWs | PwMS | P value |
| Total, N (%) | 40 (100) | 22 (100) | |
| Age, years (IQR) | 43 (29–51) | 51 (47–58) | 0.0013* |
| Male, N (%) | 11 (27.5) | 5 (22.72) | 0.681† |
| Origin | |||
| Western Europe | 39 | 22 | 0.445† |
| Asia | 1 | 0 | |
| BMI kg/m2 | 23.90 | ||
| Treatment duration, years (IQR) | 5.26 (2.1–9.2) | ||
| Time to last relapse, y (IQR) | 6.5 (2.4–10.3) | ||
| CD4:CD8 T cell ratio‡ | 2.1 (0.8–3.4) | 1.9 (1.1–2.6) | 0.842* |
| MS treatment | |||
| Ocrelizumab, N (%) | 5 (22.72) | ||
| Fingolimod, N (%) | 9 (40.9) | ||
| Cladribine, N (%) | 3 (13.63) | ||
| IFN-β, N (%) | 5 (22.72) |
*Mann-Whitney U statistic test.
†χ2 test
‡CD4:CD8 T cell ratio is a marker of immune-senescence.26
BMI, body mass index; HCWs, healthcare workers; IFN-β, interferon beta; N, Number; PwMS, patients with multiple sclerosis.