Recommendations to Address the Unique Clinical and Psychological Needs of Transgender Persons Living With Multiple Sclerosis.

Abstract

People living with multiple sclerosis (MS) face challenges coping with chronic illnesses, and transgender (TGD) persons living with MS may experience additional unique challenges and barriers to care. Medical biases toward TGD people are widely reported, and best practices in TGD MS care have not been identified. A case report of a TGD person living with MS is reviewed that helped to identify and inform us regarding the unique aspects of their clinical and psychological care needs. We conducted a systematic review of the literature according to the standard methods in PubMed. The literature was reviewed and summarized for relevant topics related to the unique care needs of TGD persons living with MS, and proposed care recommendations were created. We used the aforementioned case to identify and inform the special care needs and subsequently describe proposed recommendations to achieve inclusive comprehensive care of TGD persons with MS. The importance of providing an inclusive environment, comprehensive care, mental health screening, domestic violence screening, and case coordination are highlighted with the goal of providing best practice recommendations for the comprehensive inclusive care of TGD persons living with MS. The lack of published guidance on the care of TGD persons living with MS and our informative case have led to the proposed recommendations for the care of TGD persons living with MS.