Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a condition that affects the nerves in the brain and spinal cord. It is known as a degenerative and inflammatory autoimmune condition. It is not classed as a terminal illness.
MS itself is rarely fatal, but complications may arise from severe MS, such as chest or bladder infections, or swallowing difficulties. The average life expectancy for people with MS is around 5 to 10 years lower than average, and this gap appears to be getting smaller all the time.
Contents. 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.
Symptoms of the final stages of MS vary from person to person. But the condition is considered end-stage when it leads to life-threatening complications. Some of these complications include: Breathing problems and respiratory infections, which can cause you to keep getting pneumonia.
The study found that people with MS lived to be 75.9 years old, on average, compared to 83.4 years old for those without. That 7.5-year difference is similar to what other researchers have found recently.
Many people with MS may live for 25 to 35 years or longer after their diagnosis. Survival is improving in MS patients, but chronic medical conditions such as heart disease, lung disease, depression, or diabetes may lower life expectancy in MS.
Average life span of 25 to 35 years after the diagnosis of MS is made are often stated. Some of the most common causes of death in MS patients are secondary complications resulting from immobility, chronic urinary tract infections, compromised swallowing and breathing.
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.
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.
Last week, it was reported that Don Van Vliet, otherwise know by his rock legend persona Captain Beefheart (shown on the cover of Rolling Stone, May 1970) passed away at the age of 69 from complications of MS after many years with the disease.
Many people worry about needing to use a wheelchair at some point. No-one one can be certain how your MS will affect you, although most people with MS don't use a wheelchair.
By finding treatments that prevent nerve loss, we could slow or stop the progression of MS.
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.
MS can damage the nerves that affect your muscles. This can cause acute or paroxysmal pain in the form of spasms. Your arms and legs might shoot out uncontrollably and might have pain like cramping or pulling. Nerve pain can also be chronic in the form of painful or unusual sensations on your skin.
It can cause symptoms like problems with vision, arm or leg movement, sensation or balance. It's a lifelong condition that can sometimes cause serious disability. In many cases, it's possible to treat symptoms. Average life expectancy is slightly reduced for people with MS.
your genes – MS isn't directly inherited, but people who are related to someone with the condition are more likely to develop it; the chance of a sibling or child of someone with MS also developing it is estimated to be around 2 to 3 in 100.
Effect of MS on Life Span
In the population studied, people with MS had a median life span of 75.9 years, while for people without MS, it was 83.4 years. According to the study, “The most common causes of death in the MS population were diseases of the nervous system and diseases of the circulatory system.
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.
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).
Patients are not born with MS, but rather some environmental factor apparently acts on genetically susceptible individuals to produce the disease; but the nature of that factor (such as whether or not it is a virus) remains elusive.
MS can appear at any age but most commonly manifests between the ages of 20 and 40. It affects women two to three times as often as men. Almost one million people in the United States have MS, making it one of the most common causes of neurological disability among young adults in North America.