Clinical Studies of Multiple Sclerosis in Israel: I. A Clinical Analysis Based on a Country-Wide Survey

A country-wide survey of multiple sclerosis was completed in Israel in 1961.¹ In addition to its broad scope, this survey was unusual in that it included patients from many different parts of the world. A large immigration to Israel has occurred in recent years so that the present population includes individuals from every continent and many different countries. The population represents great cultural and ethnic diversity. Approximately one third of the population is of European birth, one third is from Afro-Asian countries, and one third is nativeborn.²

There are only a few surveys of multiple sclerosis of comparable scope, and these, for the most part, have been carried out by investigators in northern countries.^3-6 Most case series have been limited to the experience of a particular hospital or clinic^7,8 or are in other ways not representative of the general population, eg, autopsied cases,^9,10 remitting cases