Journal article
Smoking is associated with progressive disease course and increased progression in clinical disability in a prospective cohort of people with multiple sclerosis
F Pittas, AL Ponsonby, IAF Van Der Mei, BV Taylor, L Blizzard, P Groom, OC Ukoumunne, T Dwyer
Journal of Neurology | Published : 2009
Abstract
Background : Multiple sclerosis has a variable disease course. The contribution of modifiable lifestyle factors to disease course has not been well studied, although one cohort has reported that smoking is associated with conversion to secondary progressive MS course and another that smoking is not. Methods : We conducted a prospective cohort study of people with MS in Southern Tasmania from 2002 to 2004 with 78 % (203/259) of eligible participating and 198 with one or more reviews and confirmed MS. The cohort had a high retention rate (90 % (183/203)). The median follow- up time was 909 days. Smoking data were collected at baseline and six-monthly reviews. Clinical disability assessments we..
View full abstractGrants
Awarded by National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Acknowledgements
This cohort study was funded by the National Health and Medical research Council of Australia (Project 333105). Additional funding support was provided by the Trish Foundation for vitamin D measures, the Tasmanian MS Society for dietary analysis and the Ian Potter Foundation for genetic measures and the Royal Hobart Hospital Research Foundation for immunological work. I van der Mei holds an NHMRC Fellowship. F Pittas was supported by the Tasmanian Government Department of Health and Human Services, Dick Buttfield Memorial Fellowship.