prevalence and incidence of multiple sclerosis in tehran, iran

Background: tehran is the capital of iran with an increasing multiple sclerosis (ms) incidence. a retrospective population-based study was conducted to evaluate the status of ms prevalence and ms incidence trends in tehran province, iran. methods: a population-based study was conducted from 1991 to 2014 in tehran province, the capital city of iran based on iranian ms society (imss) registry system. a structured questionnaire design to cover the important epidemiological variables, related at the individual level for ms. a monte carlo permutation method was utilized to test whether the apparent change in ms trends during 1991-2014 was statistically significant. results: ms incidence was significantly increased during our study period. the annual percent change (apc) was 12.8% in women during 1991 to 2004 and 12.5% in men during the same period. the point prevalence of ms was 101.39 per 100000 populations in 2014. the age-adjusted prevalence rates were 134.03 and for male patients were 42.45 per 100000. conclusion: ms prevalence and incidence in tehran are markedly rising, it is crucial to elucidate the causes of the increasing trends and implement efficient policies lowering disease burden.