High incidence and increasing prevalence of MS in Enna (Sicily), southern Italy.

Twenty years after a first survey, a follow-up study was performed on the prevalence of MS in Enna (Sicily), southern Italy. The prevalence of definite MS rose from 53 to 120.2 per 100,000 population. The incidence of definite MS for the period 1986 to 1995 was 5.7 per 100,000 per year. The innermost part of Sicily shows an elevated prevalence of MS, second only to Sardinia in the Mediterranean area.