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Background: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a common cause of neurologic disability in young adults. Individuals with MS deal with the day-to-day effects of the disease on their lives. Self-management can help with these challenges. This study aimed to explore MS self-management needs according to experiences of persons with MS and was conducted as part of a research project to develop an MS self-management mobile application. Methods: We used a qualitative method to elicit self-management needs among 12 individuals with MS and conducted semistructured interviews with them. The participants were chosen based on snowball sampling. The interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. Finally, qualitative data were analyzed using a content analysis method (inductive way) to identify the underlying themes and subthemes. Results: The analysis resulted in the emergence of seven themes: the source of information, basic needs, understanding MS, physical exercises in MS, useful nutrition in MS, MS monitoring, and communication. Within these seven themes we identified 23 subthemes. Conclusions: The themes that emerged in this study show what needs are essential to help persons with MS improve their self-management capacity. These findings can help in the development of self-management mobile applications for supporting individuals in managing MS.

Background Stroke is a major cause of mortality and morbidity. Also, free radicals and oxidative stress are deleterious factor in the stroke progression. We aimed to evaluate the association between oxidative stress markers and odds of having risk factor for stroke or developing stroke. Methods The present case-control study was conducted on 556 participants in Imam-Reza hospital, Tabriz, Iran. Subjects were divided into three group, including individuals with acute ischemic stroke, those who were at risk of stroke, and healthy controls. All enrolled participants except for controls underwent neurological examinations and brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Stroke-related disability and stroke severity were evaluated by modified Rankin Scale (mRS) and National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS), respectively. Serum malondialdehyde (MDA) level and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) were measured within 48 h of the initiation of stroke. One-way ANOVA and Chi-square tests were used for comparing characteristics between groups. Multivariable logistic regression was implemented for odds of stroke based on MDA and TAC quartiles. Also, Spearman’s correlation was utilized. Results Serum MDA, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, cholesterol, and triglyceride were significantly higher in the stroke group than controls. High levels of MDA were associated with increased development of stroke (P-value < 0.001), however TAC and MDA were not associated with having risk factors for stroke (P-value = 1.00 and 0.27, respectively). Also, TAC level was negatively associated with baseline (ρ = − 0.28; P-value = 0.04) and follow-up (ρ = − 0.31; P-value = 0.03) NIHSS scores. Moreover, MDA was correlated with mRS score at follow-up (ρ = − 0.26; P-value = 0.04). Conclusions The balance between antioxidants and oxidants markers might reveal a new approach in this context. Further studies are warranted to identify the source of oxidative stress as well as cessation of the production of oxygen radicals in stroke.