Educate Your Health Community: On Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple Sclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease of the Central Nervous System (CNS) that affects about 400,000 people in the US (and about 2.1 million worldwide). Every week about 200 new cases are diagnosed. If you or someone you know has this disease, you understand its potentially debilitating symptoms and the mysterious nature of its origin. While many people are aware of the condition "MS" - many don't quite understand it. This is why I wanted to write a quick rundown about MS for everyone here at WEGO Health and to encourage all of you to help educate members of your health communities about MS! To share this post use this short URL: http://bit.ly/aofN9A

What is MS?
Multiple Sclerosis is an inflammatory autoimmune disease that affects the brain, spinal chord, and optic nerves where in which the body's immune system actually attacks its own myelin (the fatty substance that protects nerves in the nervous system) often also affecting nerve fibers as well. The damaged myelin creates scar tissue (where the term "sclerosis" comes from) causing nerve impulses to be distorted or interrupted causing a range of symptoms. Watch or share this video:


What are the symptoms of MS?
Common symptoms include: fatigue, numbness, walking balance and coordination problems, bladder and bowel dysfunction, vision problems, dizziness and vertigo, sexual dysfunction, cognitive function problems, emotional changes, depression, spasticity, and pain. Symptoms can be mild or severe, last a long time or a short time, and remission (especially in the early stages) occurs in 70% of MS patients.

What causes MS?
The cause of MS is still unknown - though scientists look toward a few key factors. These include possible genetic, environmental, immunologic and infectious causes.

Who gets MS?
MS is most commonly diagnosed after patients ages 20-40 have their first symptoms, though MS can appear in young children and teens as well. Like many autoimmune disease, MS occurs 2 to 3 times more often in women than in men. MS is more common at northern latitudes and places away from the equator. MS is twice as common among Caucasians and people of northern European ancestry, though MS does occur in most ethnic groups. Certain ethnic groups such as Inuits, Aborigines, and Maoris have few, if any, instances of MS. While MS is likely related to genetic factors, it is not necessarily inherited. Scientists study MS clusters for evidence of environmental causes, triggers, and risk factors.

What is the diagnosing process?
There is no single way to detect MS. Patients who express symptoms usually undergo a series of laboratory tests. If these tests are found positive, a diagnosis is made. MRIs are helpful at detecting lesions on the CNS but are not absolute as these lesions can occur in other neurological disorders.

How can you cure MS?
As of now, there is no cure for MS.

How can you treat MS?
Many patients do well without any therapy at all, which is a positive because many treatments have pretty serious risks and side effects. The likelihood of remission and reemergence make it particularly difficult to detect if certain therapies are beneficial. Steroids, for one example, can help provide relief from attacks in patients, though steroids will not affect the overall course of the disease. Some patients receive Immunotherapy, therapy to improve nerve impulse condition, therapy that targets an antigen, cytokines, remyelination, diet therapies, and other unproven natural therapies. Many MS patients seek treatment on their symptoms rather than the overall MS. You can learn more about all of these therapies & treatments here.

Do you or someone you know have MS? Feel free to add more information in the comments section of this post!
I encourage you to join the Multiple Sclerosis Group and add your favorite MS resources to this discussion.