From the Department of Medicine (Algahtani, Alfahmi, Kabli), Faculty of Medicine, Umm Al-Qura university, Internal Medicine Department (Abu Zahirah), King Faisal Hospital, Makkah, and from Faculty of Medicine (Alsuni), University of Jeddah, Jeddah Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Neurosciences (Riyadh). 2024 Oct;29(4):246-251. doi: 10.17712/nsj.2024.4.20240011.
To assess the social stigma towards multiple sclerosis in Saudi Arabia.
A descriptive cross-sectional online survey study was done in Saudi Arabia. It targets social stigma among multiple sclerosis patients in Saudi Arabia. This questionnaire was filled out by patients using Google Forms, and the questionnaire was designed to measure the demographic data and social Stigma using a validated RSS-MS scale.
After we applied the exclusion criteria, we received 381 MS patients who completed the study questionnaire. The results of the study showed that there are regions in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia where the societal stigma towards multiple sclerosis is high compared to other regions in the Northern region (25.5±10.0) and the lowest among Eastern region patients (17.3±7.2). The study also, showed that unmarried people have a higher stigma compared to married patients (21.0±8.3 vs. 18.9±8.0, respectively; =.011).
Our study showed the extent of societal stigma towards patients with multiple sclerosis in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. We recommend more psychological and social support for patients with multiple sclerosis and more volunteer campaigns for the disease.
评估沙特阿拉伯多发性硬化症的社会耻辱感。
在沙特阿拉伯进行了一项描述性的横断面在线调查研究。它针对的是沙特阿拉伯多发性硬化症患者的社会耻辱感。该问卷由患者使用 Google Forms 填写，问卷旨在使用经过验证的 RSS-MS 量表衡量人口统计学数据和社会耻辱感。
在应用排除标准后，我们收到了 381 名完成研究问卷的 MS 患者。研究结果表明，沙特阿拉伯王国的某些地区对多发性硬化症的社会耻辱感高于其他地区，北部地区（25.5±10.0）最高，东部地区患者最低（17.3±7.2）。该研究还表明，未婚者的耻辱感高于已婚患者（21.0±8.3 对 18.9±8.0；=0.011）。
我们的研究显示了沙特阿拉伯王国多发性硬化症患者所面临的社会耻辱感程度。我们建议为多发性硬化症患者提供更多的心理和社会支持，并开展更多针对该疾病的志愿者活动。
