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Between 1972 and 1988,145 deaths occurred among 3,126 patients attending the Multiple Sclerosis(MS)Clinics in Vancouver,British Columbia(N=1,583), and London,Ontario(N=1,543).We could determine the exact cause of death in 82.1%of cases(119 of 145).Of the 119 patients for whom the cause of death was known,56 deaths(47.1%)were directly attributed to complications of MS. Of the remaining 63 deaths,18(28.6%)were suicides,19(30.2%)were due to malignancy,13(20.6%)to an acute myocardial infarction,seven(11.1%)to stroke,and the remainder(9.5%)to miscellaneous causes,of which two may have been suicides.The proportion of suicides among MS deaths was 7.5 times that for the age-matched general population.The proportion of deaths due to malignancy and stroke was the same for the MS patients and the age- matched general population. |
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