The prevalence of MS is similarly high in Black and White individuals and lower in Hispanic and Asian individuals, according to findings published in Neurology. Annette M. Langer-Gould, MD, PhD, and colleagues conducted a retrospective cohort study of more than 2.6 million adults to examine whether MS prevalence varies by race and ethnicity. Among 3,863 patients with MS, average age was 51.7 and 76.8% were women. Female preponderance was more pronounced among Black and Asian individuals versus White or Hispanic individuals (81.2% and 83.6% vs 76.3% and 74.5%, respectively). Black patients and White patients had similarly high age- and sex-standardized MS prevalence (225.8 and 237.7 per 100,000, respectively), while prevalence was significantly lower among Hispanic and Asian persons (69.9 and 22.6, respectively). Across all groups, MS prevalence was highest during ages 35-64 and decreased after 65. The crude MS prevalence was low among adults aged 18-24 but was highest in Blacks and Hispanics, lower in Whites, and lowest in Asian/Pacific Islanders (48.5, 25.0, 18.0, and 7.1 per 100,000, respectively).
