Clinical characteristics and outcomes of multiple sclerosis patients with COVID-19 in Toronto, Canada

Jacqueline M. Solomon, Ashley Jones, Marika Hohol, Kristen M. Krysko, Alexandra Muccilli, Alexandra Roll, Dalia Rotstein, Raphael Schneider, Daniel Selchen, Reza Vosoughi, Stefan D. Baral, Jiwon Oh

Research output: Contribution to journalLetterpeer-review

Abstract

Objective: To report clinical characteristics and outcomes of people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS) who developed COVID-19 infection in Toronto, Canada. Methods: Descriptive, retrospective, single-center study that included all known PwMS at the St. Michael's Hospital MS Clinic who had PCR-confirmed COVID-19 infection between March 2020 and May 2021. Results: Of 7000 PwMS in our clinic, 80 (1.1%) tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. Fifty-four (67.5%) were on disease-modifying therapy (DMT) without over-representation of any single treatment. Seventy-one patients (88.8%) had mild symptoms, but nine (11.3%) were hospitalized and one 70-year-old male patient not on treatment died. Of those hospitalized, one-third were treated with ocrelizumab. Conclusion: In Toronto, PwMS did not appear to have higher prevalence of COVID-19 infection compared to the general population, but disease severity may be affected by DMT use. Our findings add to the accumulating global data regarding COVID-19 infection in PwMS.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number103509
JournalMultiple Sclerosis and Related Disorders
Volume58
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 2022

Keywords

  • COVID-19
  • Disease-modifying therapy
  • Multiple sclerosis

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Clinical Neurology
  • Neurology

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