PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Ali Manouchehrinia
AU  - Laura J Edwards
AU  - Homayoun Roshanisefat
AU  - Christopher R Tench
AU  - Cris S Constantinescu
TI  - Multiple sclerosis course and clinical outcomes in patients with comorbid asthma: a survey study
AID  - 10.1136/bmjopen-2015-007806
DP  - 2015 May 01
TA  - BMJ Open
PG  - e007806
VI  - 5
IP  - 5
4099  - http://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/5/5/e007806.short
4100  - http://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/5/5/e007806.full
SO  - BMJ Open2015 May 01; 5
AB  - Objective To determine if comorbid asthma is associated with accumulation of multiple sclerosis (MS)-related impairment and disability.Method We sent a comprehensive questionnaire to a cohort of patients with MS and examined the association between comorbid asthma and reaching Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) scores 4.0 and 6.0. Multiple Sclerosis Impact Scale (MSIS-29) scores were compared between patients with MS with and without comorbid asthma.Results 680 patients participated in our study of whom 88 (12.9%) had comorbid asthma. There was no difference in the prevalence of asthma between our MS cohort and the England general population (OR: 0.89, 95% CI 0.68 to 1.17). We did not observe a significant association between having asthma and the risk of reaching EDSS scores 4.0 and 6.0 (HR: 1.29, 95% CI 0.93 to 1.77, and HR: 1.33, 95% CI 0.93 to 1.89, respectively) after controlling for confounders. Patients with MS with asthma reported higher level of psychological impairments (coefficient: 2.29, 95% CI 0.1 to 4.49).Conclusions Asthma is a prevalent condition among patients with MS and it may contribute to the psychological impairment in MS. Although we did not observe significant association between comorbid asthma and physical disability in MS, it seems that the two conditions influence one another.