The age of onset of multiple sclerosis has changed in recent decades

Scientists have found that the age at which the first symptoms of multiple sclerosis appear has changed from 1970 to 2019. The causes of this phenomenon are unknown.

Multiple sclerosis is a chronic autoimmune disease caused by the loss of myelin from neurons.

A team from the Bellvitge University Hospital (HUB) and the Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), in Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, ​​have analyzed the age at which the first symptoms of multiple sclerosis appeared in 1,622 hospital patients with the onset of the disease between 1970 and 2019. The results, published in the academic journal Multiple Sclerosis and Related Disorders, show that in recent decades the age at which the first symptoms appear has been progressively increasing, going from 24 years on average at 34.

This study has been carried out in the Multiple Sclerosis Unit of the Bellvitge Hospital Neurology Service, led by Dr. Sergio Martínez-Yelamos, principal investigator at IDIBELL, coordinator of the Multiple Sclerosis Unit at the HUB and professor at the University of Barcelona (UB). It has been carried out in collaboration with the Preventive Medicine Service of the hospital itself.

The study has focused on relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis, the most common clinical form of the disease. This is characterized by the appearance of outbreaks in which neurological symptoms appear, followed by remission episodes of varying lengths in which these symptoms partially or totally disappear. Outbreaks, over time, can leave irreversible sequelae. The first symptoms usually appear between the ages of 20 and 40, although this disease can manifest at any age.

In multiple sclerosis, the protective covering of nerve cells is inappropriately attacked by the immune system. In the image, recreation of a nerve cell. (Illustration: Amazings/NCYT)

“We do not know the reasons why the age at onset of the first symptoms has increased -comments Dr. Lucía Romero-Pinel, first author of the work, neurologist at the Multiple Sclerosis Unit of the HUB and IDIBELL researcher-. However, there are several factors that we believe could be influencing, such as the availability of more accurate diagnostic methods, certain changes in lifestyle, or, one of the most plausible explanations, the epidemiological evolution of the Epstein-Barr virus” .

Infection with this virus, commonly known as the mononucleosis virus, is an environmental risk factor for developing multiple sclerosis. Recent studies show that infection by the Epstein-Barr virus is taking place increasingly at later ages, probably due to the improvement in socioeconomic conditions, which could consequently be delaying the onset of multiple sclerosis. (Source: IDIBELL)