The most common symptoms reported in RRMS include episodic bouts of fatigue, numbness, vision problems, spasticity or stiffness, bowel and bladder problems, and problems with cognition (learning and memory or information processing).
People with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) may go through periods of new or worsening symptoms called flares. Common symptoms of MS flares can include feeling tired, pain, numbness, dizziness, muscle spasms, muscle weakness, brain fog, problems with going to the bathroom, or trouble seeing.
To figure out if disease is progressing, doctors use a scale called the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS). The EDSS is a way of measuring physical disability. Two-thirds of those with MS will not progress past level 6 on the EDSS.
Numbness or Tingling
Numbness is one of the most common signs of a multiple sclerosis relapse. You can lose so much feeling that it's hard to use your hands or other affected body parts.
What causes exacerbations? Exacerbations (relapses) are caused by inflammation in the central nervous system (CNS). The inflammation damages the myelin, slowing or disrupting the transmission of nerve impulses and causing the symptoms of MS.
Relapses typically last from a few days to several weeks or months.
In many patients, over a span of 5 to 15 years, the attacks begin more indolently, persist more chronically and remit less completely, gradually transforming into a pattern of steady deterioration rather than episodic flares. This pattern is referred to as secondary progressive MS.
What is “highly active MS”? The term highly active MS has not been precisely defined but the most important features include frequent relapses with incomplete recovery, and/or high radiological burden of disease, rapid accrual of disability after disease onset, with otherwise typical features of MS.
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.
What is a relapse? A relapse is defined by "the appearance of new symptoms, or the return of old symptoms, for a period of 24 hours or more – in the absence of an infection or a change in your core body temperature. On top of that, 30 days must've passed since your last relapse or flare up of symptoms.
Fatigue in MS is not just an ordinary tiredness, like you might get at the end of a hard day's work. People describe it as an overwhelming sense of tiredness with no obvious cause. You may wake up feeling as tired as you did when you went to sleep.
New lesions on MRI, as shown by the arrows, often occur as part of a relapse. However, new MRI lesions indicating MS activity may also occur without symptoms of which the person is aware.
Unfortunately, there's currently no treatment that can slow the progress of primary progressive MS, or secondary progressive MS, where there are no relapses. Many therapies aiming to treat progressive MS are currently being researched.
Blood Tests: Currently, there are no definitive blood tests for diagnosing MS, but they can be used to rule out other conditions that may mimic MS symptoms, including Lyme disease, collagen-vascular diseases, rare hereditary disorders and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS).
Fatigue is a side effect of nervous system damage and is one of the most common symptoms of MS, affecting up to 90% of people.
MS can occur at any age, but onset usually occurs around 20 and 40 years of age.
The most important thing: Don't overdo it. No doubt you've heard the sayings "no pain, no gain" or "feel the burn," but that isn't good advice when you have MS. Doing too much can strain your muscles, increase pain, and put too much stress on your body and your mind.
As you get older, MS becomes more of a progressive disease. You might notice your MS symptoms start to get worse just as you reach menopause.
Protect nerves from damage
These include clearing up debris left over from myelin attacks, making sure nerves have the energy they need, and improving transport of important molecules in the nerves. By finding treatments that prevent nerve loss, we could slow or stop the progression of MS.
Fatigue is often worse during a relapse, so you may need to rest. Also, it is important to prevent your core temperature from rising as this can make you feel worse. But everyone's MS is different, so trial and error - and getting advice from your doctor or physiotherapist - are the keys to managing relapses.
Studies included in the analysis indicated that accumulated stress or the presence of many different stressful events increased the risk of relapse compared with a single stressful event. Likewise, chronic stress that lasted more than 48 hours has a greater effect on MS than acute stress.
Studies have found that continuous emotional stress, rather than short-term stress, can trigger an MS relapse in people with RRMS. Long-term, continuous stress keeps the immune system on hyper-alert, is very pro-inflammatory and creates a lot of wear and tear in the body, otherwise known as allostatic load.