Table 1.
Demographic and medical characteristics of participants.
| Characteristic | Cases (MS patients with COVID-19) N (%) |
Controls (MS patients without COVID-19) N (%) |
Characteristic | Cases (MS patients with COVID-19) N (%) |
Controls (MS patients without COVID-19) N (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sex | Underlying diseases | ||||
| Male | 13 (26%) | 73 (12.5%) | Hypertension | 12 (3.9%) | 2 (3.8%) |
| Female | 39 (74%) | 273 (87.5%) | CAD | 7 (2.3%) | 1 (1.9%) |
| Age (Mean (SD)) | 37.6 (9.23) | 38.4 (9.05) | Diabetes | 10 (3.2%) | 5 (9.6%) |
| Smoking | Pulmonary disease | 5 (1.6%) | 1 (1.9%) | ||
| Smoker | 11 (21.2%) | 52 (16.8%) | Interferon beta 1a | 6 (11.5%) | 65 (21%) |
| Non-smoker | 41 (78.8%) | 258 (83.2%) | Disease modifying therapies | ||
| BMI | Interferon beta 1b | 2 (3.8%) | 10 (3.2%) | ||
| <18.5 | 1 (1.9%) | 7 (2.3%) | Glatiramer acetate | 7 (13.5%) | 58 (18.7%) |
| 18.5–24.9 | 23 (44.2%) | 156 (50.7%) | Fingolimod | 4 (7.7%) | 53 (17.1%) |
| 25–29.9 | 24 (46.2%) | 123 (39.9%) | Natalizumab | 2 (3.8%) | 6 (1.9%) |
| ≥30 | 4 (7.7%) | 22 (7.1%) | Rituximab | 30 (57.8%) | 110 (35.5%) |
| Family history of MS | Triflunomide | 0 | 1 (0.3%) | ||
| Yes | 11 (21.2%) | 65 (21%) | Dimethyl Fumarate | 1 (1.9%) | 7 (2.3%) |
| No | 41 (78.8%) | 245 (79%) | Baseline EDSS (Mean (SD)) | 2.07 (1.87) | 1.95 (1.87) |
| Disease duration (months) | Baseline MRI lesions (Mean (SD)) | 0.47 (0.30) | 0.51 (0.33) | ||
| <60 | 12 (23.1%) | 60 (19.4%) | |||
| 61–120 | 24 (46.2%) | 93 (30%) | |||
| >120 | 16 (30.7%) | 157 (50.6%) | |||
| Total | 52 (14.4%) | 310 (85.6%) | |||
SD: standard deviation, BMI: body mass index, MS: multiple sclerosis, CAD: coronary artery disease, EDSS: expanded disability status scale, MRI: Magnetic Resonance Imaging.