Who is most at risk for developing multiple sclerosis?
We don't know who is most at risk from developing multiple sclerosis (MS). We think there is a genetic susceptibility. There are some ethnic background issues, people of Northern European extraction have more MS. The largest focus of MS is in Scandinavia. The Vikings got around, so they may have contributed. There are also geographic considerations. People who come from the Mediterranean, or from the south, even in our country, have less MS. And there's no question that those people who are north get less sun than the people who are south. I think that the issue really relates to "Why is that?". The only factor that you can think of is UV light. That's something that is really tantalizing. We talked a little bit about the hygiene theory. There's no question that the more middle class you are, the more affluent you are; the more susceptible you are to MS. So what is the reason? If the reason is an infectious trigger, you're being protected by your hygiene. And that actually is a theory of MS; the reason for these kinds of people - the northern European people, is not just their genetic susceptibility, but they happen to be people very orientated towards being clean. It is predominantly female. The peak age group is probably around thirty, however we are seeing it in children; there are children now that have been diagnosed with it in this country, and we are diagnosing it in people who are forty, fifty, and sixty years of age because of improved techniques like MRI and so forth.
