Ethnic Disparities in Multiple Sclerosis Epidemiology
Summary
Multiple sclerosis displays marked variation in incidence, prevalence and disease course across ethnic groups. Historically seen as a disorder of northern European ancestry, evolving data reveal significant disease burden among Black, Hispanic, Latinx, South Asian and other minority populations worldwide. These groups frequently present with earlier onset, more aggressive progression and greater disability accumulation. Contributory genetic factors include variation in HLA alleles and non-HLA risk loci with differential penetrance by ancestry. Environmental influences, such as vitamin D insufficiency, ultraviolet exposure and smoking, intersect with social determinants of health – including socioeconomic status, health literacy and healthcare access – to modulate risk and outcomes. Methodological heterogeneity in racial and ethnic classification, underrepresentation in clinical trials and reliance on administrative datasets complicate comparisons across studies. Improved characterisation of epidemiological patterns is essential for equitable resource allocation, culturally competent care and targeted preventive strategies worldwide.
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Ethnic Disparities in Multiple Sclerosis Epidemiology publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in ethnic disparities in multiple sclerosis epidemiology across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Prevalence: The proportion of a specific population found to have a disease at a given time.
Modifiable risk factor: An exposure or behaviour that can be changed to reduce the likelihood of developing a condition.
Social determinants of health: The economic, environmental and social conditions that influence individual and group health outcomes.
Genetic penetrance: The likelihood that a person carrying a particular gene variant will exhibit the associated trait or disease.
References
- Population-Based Estimates for the Prevalence of Multiple Sclerosis in the United States by Race, Ethnicity, Age, Sex, and Geographic Region. JAMA Neurology (2023).
- Modifiable risk factors for multiple sclerosis have consistent directions of effect across diverse ethnic backgrounds: a nested case–control study in an English population-based cohort. Journal of Neurology (2023).
- Admixture mapping reveals evidence of differential multiple sclerosis risk by genetic ancestry. PLOS Genetics (2019).
- Social determinants of health and disparate disability accumulation in a cohort of Black, Hispanic, and White patients with multiple sclerosis. Multiple Sclerosis Journal (2023).
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