Alberta GmbH, Zürich, Switzerland.
Neuroepidemiology. 2012;39(1):51-6. doi: 10.1159/000338676. Epub 2012 Jul 5.
Multiple sclerosis is rare in tropical areas, but quite common in developed countries. Hence, latitude has been accepted as a causal factor for prevalence of multiple sclerosis. However, developed countries have also strong economic power, which may be measured by real gross domestic product per capita.
Bivariate and multivariate regression models were used to assess the association of the prevalence of multiple sclerosis of 62 countries with real gross domestic product per capita and latitude.
Real gross domestic product per capita and latitude are positively associated with the prevalence of multiple sclerosis. Real gross domestic product per capita is a much stronger predictor of prevalence of multiple sclerosis than latitude.
The strong correlation between the real gross domestic product per capita and the prevalence rates of multiple sclerosis is pointing to a new direction in research on the causes of multiple sclerosis. It is plausible that certain lifestyles and consumption behaviors that require high purchasing power might be associated with an increased risk of multiple sclerosis.
多发性硬化症在热带地区较为罕见，但在发达国家却很常见。因此，纬度被认为是多发性硬化症发病率的一个因果因素。然而，发达国家也拥有强大的经济实力，可以用实际人均国内生产总值来衡量。
采用双变量和多变量回归模型来评估 62 个国家多发性硬化症的流行率与实际人均国内生产总值和纬度之间的关联。
实际人均国内生产总值和纬度与多发性硬化症的流行率呈正相关。实际人均国内生产总值是多发性硬化症流行率的一个更强有力的预测指标，而纬度则不是。
实际人均国内生产总值与多发性硬化症发病率之间的强相关性为多发性硬化症病因的研究指明了一个新的方向。某些需要高购买力的生活方式和消费行为可能与多发性硬化症的风险增加有关，这是合理的。
