Table 2.
Care-seeking of the MS population over the 2010–2015 period (N = 112,415) and according to the Charlson comorbidity index (data missing for 8960 patients).
| TotalN = 112,415 | Charlson index <3n = 100,796 | Charlson index ≥3n = 2659 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| At least one visit to, n (%) | |||
| GP | 109,963 (97.8%) | 99,341 (98.6%) | 2616 (98.4%) |
| Private neurologist | 62,097 (55.2%) | 56,912 (56.5%) | 1096 (41.2%) |
| Public neurologista | 78,367 (69.7%) | 70,538 (70.0%) | 1989 (74.8%) |
| Private or public neurologista | 98,058 (87.2%) | 88,582 (87.9%) | 2225 (83.7%) |
| Nurse | 94,664 (84.2%) | 86,420 (85.7%) | 2437 (91.7%) |
| Physiotherapist | 61,332 (54.6%) | 56,633 (56.2%) | 1952 (73.4%) |
| Number of visits per patient-year | |||
| GP* | 6.6 (3.7–12.0) | 6.8 (3.8–12.2) | 11.0 (6.2–20.2) |
| Private neurologist* | 0.2 (0.0–1.7) | 0.2 (0.0–1.7) | 0.0 (0.0–0.7) |
| Public neurologist*,a | 0.4 (0.0–1.2) | 0.3 (0.0–1.2) | 0.5 (0.0–1.4) |
| Private or public neurologist*,a | 1.3 (0.4–2.7) | 1.3 (0.4–2.7) | 1.0 (0.3–2.4) |
| Nurse* | 3.3 (0.5–14.2) | 3.5 (0.7–14.8) | 16.9 (3.2–128.3) |
| Physiotherapist* | 1.3 (0.0–26.5) | 1.7 (0.0–28.5) | 14.3 (0.0–73.9) |
| All medical specialties (private or public)* | 16.3 (10.2–26.9) | 16.8 (10.8–27.2) | 25.7 (15.9–44.9) |
| At least one hospitalisation in MSO, n (%) | |||
| All diagnoses | 92,007 (81.8%) | 82,548 (81.9%) | 2537 (95.3%) |
| MS-related | 44,125 (39.3%) | 39,364 (39.1%) | 873 (32.8%) |
| Length of stay in MSOb (days per patient-year) | |||
| All diagnoses* | 2.3 (0.8–5.9) | 2.2 (0.8–5.7) | 8.7 (3.2–23.6) |
| MS-related* | 1.1 (0.5–2.5) | 1.1 (0.5–2.5) | 1.5 (0.6–3.7) |
| At least one hospitalisation in REHAB, n (%) | |||
| All diagnoses | 27,236 (24.2%) | 24,801 (24.6%) | 1213 (45.6%) |
| MS-related | 20,117 (17.9%) | 18,664 (18.5%) | 558 (21.0%) |
| Length of stay in REHABb (days per patient-year) | |||
| All diagnoses* | 7.7 (3.2–17.8) | 7.3 (3.2–17.3) | 13.0 (5.2–31.7) |
| MS-related* | 6.3 (2.7–14.7) | 6.3 (2.5–14.5) | 8.2 (3.8–18.0) |
| Received MS-specific DMT at least once, n (%) | 53,455 (46.7%) | 48,440 (48.1%) | 520 (19.6%) |
Charlson comorbidity index <3 and ≥3 correspond to the PwMS having a Charlson index based on data from the 12 months preceding their entry in the study, if available, strictly lower than 3 or greater than 3, respectively.
MS = multiple sclerosis; GP = general practitioner; MSO = medicine, surgery or obstetrics; REHAB = rehabilitation.
*Median (q1–q3). aPublic neurologists and public GPs altogether; bonly for patients having at least one hospitalization.