Multiple sclerosis (MS) causes damage to nerve fibers in the central nervous system. Over time, it can lead to vision problems, muscle weakness, loss of balance or numbness. Several drug therapies can limit nerve damage and slow the disease's progression.
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.
Many people living with MS also live with other conditions (comorbidities) like diabetes, hypertension (high blood pressure), heart disease, lung disease, and certain mood disorders (such as depression).
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.
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.
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.
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.
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a disease of the central nervous system that can affect the brain, spinal cord and optic nerves. Common symptoms include fatigue, bladder and bowel problems, sexual problems, pain, cognitive and mood changes such as depression, muscular changes and visual changes.
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.
Alcohol can exacerbate some symptoms of MS, such as those related to urinary frequency, depression, thinking, and balance. Alcohol can also interact with medications, affecting how they work or increasing the risk of adverse effects, such as liver damage.
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.
What Does MS Feels Like? A lack of feeling or a pins-and-needles sensation can be the first sign of nerve damage from MS. It usually happens in your face, arms, or legs, and on one side of your body. It tends to go away on its own.
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a potentially disabling disease of the brain and spinal cord (central nervous system).
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.
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).
While the genetics governing MS risk are still not completely understood, some 200 genes are thought to possibly contribute — even in small ways — to MS development. The strongest genetic risk factor is a particular variant of the HLA-DRB1 gene, called HLA-DRB1*15:01.
PTSD and Chronic Stress Caused by Trauma May Play a Role in Findings. Childhood trauma results in PTSD and chronic stress, which may be partly how it influences the likelihood a person will develop MS, says Jacobs.
Difficulty thinking. Fatigue. Pain, which may be acute or chronic, caused by the nerves that carry sensation "short circuiting." Types of pain can include band-like pain around the chest, or MS hug, caused by spastic nerves along with other types of painful sensations in the neck, arms, legs and feet. Sexual problems.
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.
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.
Lifetime risk of MS by relationship to someone with MS:
Parent - 1 in 67. Child - 1 in 48. Relatives that were less closely related had a lower risk. The lifetime risk in the general population is about 1 in 330.
Abnormal sensations can be a common initial symptom of MS. This often takes the form of numbness or tingling in different parts of your body, such as the arms, legs or trunk, which typically spreads out over a few days.