ArticleJournal of family & community medicine
Triggers for multiple sclerosis relapse in Saudi Arabia: An exploratory cross-sectional study.
Article in Journal of family & community medicine. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- Balancing innovation and affordability in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis: a budget impact analysis from Saudi Arabia.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundMultiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune demyelinating inflammatory disease that affects the central nervous system. Relapse of MS involves the development of new MS-related neurological symptoms or the worsening of existing symptoms for at least 24 h, at least 30 days after the start of the last relapse. Stress, lack of sleep, high/low temperatures, infections, missed doses of MS medications, high-altitudes, antibiotic use, the use of oral contraceptives, and smoking are possible triggers for an MS relapse. To our knowledge, no studies have identified triggers for MS relapse in Saudi Arabia. MATERIALS AND
methodsThis cross-sectional study was conducted among Saudi MS patients aged 16 years or older who met the criteria of relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) or secondary-progressive MS (SPMS). Patients were recruited through Arfa MS society. Data collected included demographic information, type of MS, age at diagnosis, family history of MS, and possible trigger factors. Medical information was abstracted from electronic files whereas information about trigger factors was patients obtained through interviewing the patients. Categorical variables were presented as frequency and percentage, whereas mean and standard deviation were calculated for continuous variables. Chi-square test was used to compare the data across categorical variables.
resultsA total of 305 MS patients were included in the study. Majority of the participants were females (61.6%) and were aged >30 years (63.9%); 89.5% had RRMS and 11.1% patients had a family history of MS. Anxiety and stress were the most frequently reported triggers by the participants (77.4%). Anxiety and stress, sleep deprivation, and pregnancy or breastfeeding were significantly common in respondents aged <30 years (P < 0.05).
conclusionThis study is the first step toward identifying the triggers for MS relapse in Saudi Arabia. It will support the expansion of research for the establishment of strategies to avoid these triggers.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.