[Clinical features of multiple sclerosis in Western Cuba. A comparison with two other regions in the country].
BACKGROUND
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an inflammatory disease in its early stages whose primary or secondary immunological mechanisms produce reversible or irreversible lesions in the myelin and axons in the central nervous system. The first case of MS in Cuba was reported in 1965. Current prevalence of MS is considered to be 10 cases/100,000 inhabitants.


OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study was to characterise MS in Western Cuba from a clinical point of view and in comparison with other similar studies carried out in two other regions in the country.


METHODS
50 patients living in the western region were clinically assessed. Statistical tests were carried out to compare this survey with two similar studies conducted in the central and eastern regions.


RESULTS
80% of our patients were females, predominantly white skinned, the main events in their family histories were neurological diseases and psychiatric diseases, essentially schizophrenia, the chief triggering event being psychic tension, the most frequent form of progression was the remittent recurring form, followed by secondary progressive form, and then the primary progressive; the main symptoms at onset were visual, followed by pyramidal and sensory; the most strongly affected functional system was the pyramidal and then the sensory system; the functional systems are more affected in the primary progressive form, except the visual and the brainstem; the largest group of patients corresponded to those that had a history of over 10 years with the disorder. By far the majority of results compared with the series from the central region and from Santiago de Cuba were similar, but some significant differences did appear on comparing these two series.


CONCLUSIONS
The study shows the characteristics of the disease in the Western region valuated using distinct parameters and several differences between the three series can be observed fundamentally with regard to skin colour, triggering events, symptoms at onset and functional involvement in the forms of progression.
Hernández-Valero
E
E
Instituto Nacional de Neurología y Neurocirugía, Hospital Universitario Dr. Gustavo Aldereguía Lima, Cienfuegos, Cuba. erelido@infomed.sld.cu
Cabrera-Gómez
J A
JA
Valenzuela
C
C
D003462:Cuba / Q000453:epidemiology; D018450:Disease Progression; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D012880:Skin Pigmentation