[ewizabeth]

http://www.wrex.com/global/story.asp?s=9945509

Last call for Multiple Sclerosis study participants

Posted: March 4, 2009 11:37 AM CST



ROCKFORD - Researchers at the U of I College of Medicine in Rockford are making a final call for volunteers to take part in a study on the affects of MS in our area.
More than 700 people with MS have participated so far. The hope was to get 1,000 people to take part in the study.
Participation has been analyzed according to the distribution by zip code. The ten highest MS rates so far for zip codes are below. Compton and Paw Paw are contiguous.

PRELIMINARY HIGHEST MS PREVALENCE

Researchers are trying to get closer to finding what causes Multiple Sclerosis. Their previous research suggests the disease is about five times more common in our region than it is in other parts of the country and now they want to confirm that.
They'll also try to figure out if social and economic factors play a role in who has the disease. "Rather than looking at MS in the laboratory to find what causes it, we're doing community epidemiology to find out where it is and what parts of the community characteristics seem to be related to multiple sclerosis," said Assistant Dean for Health Systems Research Joel Cowen.


To participate you must:

• Be 18 or older
• Have lived in Boone, Bureau, Carroll, DeKalb, Henry, Jo Daviess, La Salle, Lee, Ogle, Rock Island, Stephenson, Whiteside or Winnebago County on July 1, 2008.
• Have been diagnosed with MS by a health professional

For more information and a participation form call Health Systems Research at 1-800-854-4461 or 1-815-395-5639.

To enroll online: http://www.rockford.medicine.uic.edu/
For a schedule of meetings e-mail: hsr@uic.edu

I tried to add the table but it didn't post right. To see it, go to the link provided. It's interesting to note that there are zero cases for DeKalb.

[DM]

Hey Wiz~ I saw this in the paper and heard it on the news. I also got a form letter from Mayo Clinic talking about the research for our area and No IL. Pretty interesting stuff.

[Debbie D]

So, is it in the water? Is it from the Byron nuclear plant? What is causing this?

[ewizabeth]

Vic thinks it's hereditary because of the way the patterns are throughout the population. That makes sense too. Like a few of the highest concentrated areas in Illinois are more rural areas. So maybe with families living there for decades it has raised the numbers there?

I called the 800# and they're sending out the info to me so I can participate.