Multiple Sclerosis is a
disease that causes progressive destruction of the myelin sheaths that
encapsulated the neurons of the central nervous system. The name multiple
sclerosis describes the anatomical pathology: that is in multiple
regions, the myelin sheaths deteriorate to scleroses, which can be
described as hardened scars or plaques. The myelin sheaths are fatty layers that
protect the neurones and help to send electrical signals around the body; hence
their destruction slows and then short-circuits the conduction of necessary
nerve impulses.
Multiple sclerosis afflicts
over 2million people worldwide and affects twice as many females as males. The
symptoms of multiple sclerosis often become apparent in early adulthood and
because the entire central nervous system is involved, they can be very varied
in regards to the functions that are affected and their severity.
The most common form of
multiple sclerosis is classed as relapsing-remitting. This usually appears in
early adulthood and the initial symptoms include a feeling of heaviness or
weakness in the muscles, abnormal sensations such as tingling, burning and
numbness and occasionally double vision. An attack is normally followed by a
period of remission during which the symptoms temporarily disappear.
Unfortunately however, multiple sclerosis is a chronic illness and so one attack
follows another over the years. Often these attacks get closer together and more
severe with the result being a progressive loss of function interspersed with
periods of remission where all symptoms abate.
The symptoms of multiple
sclerosis fall into two broad categories; those that affect movement and bodily
functions and those that affect the cognitive functions.
The symptoms that affect
movement include chronic fatigue, difficulty walking, loss of balance, problems
with coordination, abnormal sensations such as numbness and tingling, pain in
the joints and muscle spasticity. The symptoms of cognitive function decline
include memory loss, confusion, problems changing thoughts into words, loss of
concentration, short attention span and the loss of reasoning. All of the
symptoms above are caused by the demylination of specific neurons within the
brain and spinal chord.
Around half of the people
diagnosed with multiple sclerosis will suffer from some form of cognitive
dysfunction however less than 10% will have symptoms so severe that everyday
tasks are affected. Because of the immense variety in symptoms associated with
multiple sclerosis each patient presents a novel case and in some sufferers the
disease is misdiagnosed as lupus or another autoimmune disease.
Multiple
sclerosis is also an autoimmune disease in which the body’s own immune system
launches an attack on the cells of the central nervous system. The trigger for
multiple sclerosis is unknown although a genetic susceptibility and exposure to
some environmental factor are both thought to contribute.
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