It's usually diagnosed during childbearing years, between the ages of 20 and 40. But it can happen at any age. The good news is that if you have MS and get the right medical care, chances are you can have a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby.
Women can be reassured that MS is considered not to have an impact on the woman's ability to conceive and carry a fetus to term, as well as MS diagnosis does not increase the rates of premature or stillbirth, birth defects, cesarean delivery or spontaneous abortions [10].
MS does not affect the basic fertility of either men or women, although sexual problems may interfere with the ability of a man with MS to father a baby. "Dry orgasms" that impair fertility, have been reported by men with MS in several studies.
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.
Women with MS can get pregnant safely, and the condition does not impair the functional capacity of women with MS during or after pregnancy, although fertility is reduced even before diagnosis.
Pregnancy and delivery with MS
There are fewer MS relapses during pregnancy, especially in the second and third trimesters. Changes that take place in a woman's body during pregnancy are believed to contribute to less inflammation, less MS activity and fewer relapses.
Every week in the U.S., about 200 people are diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, or MS. According to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, four times as many women have MS as men, and more and more women are developing it.
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.
MS may have a bimodal progression, the team said. Either patients continue to have a mild and stable disease, such as the majority of RRMS patients in the study, or their disease progresses to SPMS. Nonetheless, based on the results, Chung concluded that “very stable 'benign' MS does exist.”
Pulmonary complications.
MS can weaken the muscles that control the lungs. Such respiratory issues are the major cause of sickness and death in people in the final stages of MS.
Dating someone with MS, or being in a relationship with them, can be a source of happiness and contentment. However, the condition can also be challenging, meaning people may need to adapt their approach to spending quality time together, intimacy, and maintaining an emotional connection.
The youngest age of onset of MS in the medical literature is 2 years but the majority of children are diagnosed in their early teens.
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.
Pregnancy doesn't seem to speed up or worsen MS.
Can I breastfeed my baby if I have MS? Having MS need not affect your choices in how you feed your baby. Breastfeeding is recommended for all babies, including those who have parents with 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.
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.
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.
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.
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. MS and its complications are the cause of death for about half the people diagnosed with the disease.
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 is not directly inherited from parent to child. There's no single gene that causes it. Over 200 genes might affect your chances of getting MS.
More prevalent among those of northern European or Scandinavian ancestry, Caucasians have a higher incidence than those of African heritage to develop MS. In addition to the fact that a lower percentage of African-Americans are diagnosed with MS than White-Americans, other differences have been observed.