There is no cure for multiple sclerosis. Treatment typically focuses on speeding recovery from attacks, reducing new radiographic and clinical relapses, slowing the progression of the disease, and managing MS symptoms. Some people have such mild symptoms that no treatment is necessary.
Disease-modifying therapies may also help to slow or reduce the overall worsening of disability in people with a type of MS called relapsing remitting MS, and in some people with types called primary and secondary progressive MS, who have relapses.
There is some evidence that the use of effective medications during the RRMS phase of the disease can slow down or possibly prevent the transition to SPMS. Patients with SPMS generally have fewer relapses than they would with RRMS, because the inflammation has decreased.
MS is a progressive disease for which no cure has yet been found. Although there are treatments to manage the disease course, they are only partially effective and slow down progression for most patients. This means that some people's MS will worsen in spite of everything they and their doctors may attempt.
On average, people with primary-progressive MS start having symptoms between ages 35 and 39.
A person with benign MS will have few symptoms or loss of ability after having MS for about 15 years, while most people with MS would be expected to have some degree of disability after that amount of time, particularly if their MS went untreated.
We know early treatment improves long-term health and wellbeing by slowing down the build up of irreversible damage and reducing the number of relapses people experience. Starting MS treatment early is best but if you start later it can also have some benefits.
Although MS is a chronic condition, there are some ways to manage it with drugs and lifestyle changes. There is no complete cure or prevention method, but diet, exercise, medications, and early detection can go a long way in slowing its progression.
You may have to adapt your daily life if you're diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS), but with the right care and support many people can lead long, active and healthy lives.
Multiple sclerosis (MS) triggers that worsen symptoms or cause a relapse can include stress, heart disease and smoking. While some are easier to avoid than others, maintaining a healthy lifestyle and overall health and wellness can have outsized benefits for MS patients.
Can I have multiple sclerosis for years and not know it? Yes. MS can go undetected for years. Research has suggested that many patients experience MS-related symptoms and signs several years before receiving a definite diagnosis of the disease.
There is no cure for MS, but there are drugs that can alter the course of the condition. Research in recent years has determined a few things about risk factors. For example, low levels of vitamin D, smoking, having overweight, and living farther from the Equator can increase the risk.
Including anti-inflammatory foods such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and omega-3 fatty acids can help reduce inflammation and improve brain function. Foods rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids, like salmon and walnuts, have also been linked to better cognitive function and reduced risk of developing MS.
Most symptoms develop abruptly, within hours or days. These attacks or relapses of MS typically reach their peak within a few days at most and then resolve slowly over the next several days or weeks so that a typical relapse will be symptomatic for about eight weeks from onset to recovery. Resolution is often complete.
Although more people are being diagnosed with MS today than in the past, the reasons for this are not clear. Likely contributors include greater awareness of the disease, better access to medical care and improved diagnostic capabilities. There is no definitive evidence that the rate of MS is generally on the increase.
Some people with MS say following a special diet gives them a feeling of control over their MS. Or makes them feel better and helps with their symptoms, but that's not the case for everyone. At the moment there isn't enough evidence to recommend any special diet for people with MS.
Race. White people, particularly those of Northern European descent, are at highest risk of developing MS . People of Asian, African or Native American descent have the lowest risk. A recent study suggests that the number of Black and Hispanic young adults with multiple sclerosis may be greater than previously thought.
Most people start to get MS symptoms between 20 and 40 years old. But sometimes, you won't have any MS symptoms until you're 50 or older. When this happens, doctors call it later-onset multiple sclerosis (LOMS).
Multiple sclerosis usually affects people between the ages of 20 and 50 years, and the average age of onset is approximately 34 years. Multiple sclerosis can affect children and teens (pediatric MS).
Healthy adults have a small amount of brain atrophy due to natural ageing, but in many people with untreated MS, brain atrophy occurs at a much faster rate. Current MS treatments aim to prevent new central nervous system lesions forming that lead to irreversible damage and brain atrophy.
More specifically, SSDI defines disability under the diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis as including one or more of the following: Significant and persistent disorganization of motor function in two extremities, resulting in sustained disturbance of gross and dexterous movements, or gait and station.
Your chances of getting disability with MS are high if you have enough medical evidence to back up your claim that you can no longer work anymore because of your MS and you have enough work credits in order to qualify for disability.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) recognizes MS as a chronic illness or “impairment” that can cause disability severe enough to prevent an individual from working.
Many people with MS choose to use wheelchairs or scooters from time to time or to do certain things, perhaps because of symptoms like fatigue or weakness, or to conserve energy.