Background
: Despite investigations on the effect of disease modifying therapies (DMTs) used in multiple sclerosis (MS) on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19); there are still controversies.
Objective
: We designed this study to evaluate the epidemiological features of covid-19 in a large sample of people with MS (pwMS) in Isfahan, Iran, as well as the association between DMTs, risk of COVID-19 infection and hospitalization.
Methods
: In an observational pwMS, we interviewed subjects on their MS and COVID-19 history.
Results
: 3050 subjects were included (74% female) with a mean age of 41.36. 423 (13.8%) had confirmed COVID-19 which shows that pwMS are at a higher risk of infection compared to the general population, No significant relationship was observed in COVID-19 infection when individual drugs. Dimethyl fumarate and rituximab had the lowest and the highest relative risks for hospitalization rate compared to other drugs, respectively.
Conclusion
: We found no evidence supporting a higher prevalence of COVID-19 in pwMS compared to the general population. However, our results show pwMS to be more prone to hospitalization compared to the general population, Therefore, it is advised to use safer treatment if possible until complete vaccination, and to postpone the use of rituximab.
Protein S deficiency is a thrombophilia associated with an increased risk of thromboembolism. Previous studies have shown its role as a predisposing factor for venous thromboembolism, but its role in recurrent arterial ischemic stroke remains uncertain. Here we report a patient with recurrent ischemic stroke due to protein S deficiency. Oral anticoagulant treatment with vitamin K antagonist (VKA) drugs is used to treat and prevent thromboembolic events caused by thrombophilia, but it has many limitations, especially in the case of recurrent thromboembolic events. Direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) have many advantages over VKA. Previous studies have shown that they are safe in cases of thrombophilia, but they are not well studied in recurrent ischemic stroke due to protein S deficiency. In this study our patient was treated with rivaroxaban. Protein S deficiency may be a predisposing factor in recurrent ischemic stroke, and rivaroxaban can be a safe and effective treatment option. Further studies are needed to confirm our findings.
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