title: Comparison of serum levels of copper and zinc among multiple sclerosis patients and control group.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  There have been several studies done on the role of metals in the occurrence of multiple sclerosis (MS) disease, but their roles have not been confirmed yet. Because of the lack of information on this issue, this study compared the serum level of copper and zinc in MS patients with their levels in a control group.
  
  
  METHODS
  This was an analytical, cross-sectional study conducted in Kerman (a medium size city), Iran. We assessed the serum level of copper and zinc in 58 MS patients and 39 healthy individuals, who were selected from the relatives of cases and matched for age and sex.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The average serum level of Copper in cases and controls were 93.7 and 88.9 ml/dl, respectively. The corresponding numbers for Zinc were 36.7 and 40.9 ml/dl, respectively. There was no significant difference between the two groups (copper: P = 0.459; zinc: P = 0.249).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The groups were matched for age, sex, and family. However, we did not find a considerable difference between the level of these metals in MS patients and controls.
authors.affiliation: Associate Professor, Department of Neurology AND Kerman Neurology Research Center, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran.
authors.forename: Behnaz
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Sedighi
authors.forename: Hossein Ali
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Ebrahimi
authors.forename: Ali Akbar
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Haghdoost
authors.forename: Marzie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Abotorabi
keywords: Copper; Multiple Sclerosis; Zinc