Medical research

Study identifies potential cause of long COVID muscle weakness

University of Malta researchers have discovered a potential cause of the persistent and often debilitating symptoms experienced by long COVID-19 patients. The new study published in Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA)—Molecular ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes

Six things to know about multiple sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a disorder of the nervous system that affects about 1 million people in the United States. It usually begins between the ages of 20 and 40 and is the most common disabling neurological disorder ...

Medications

Neurologist working to improve access to MS treatments

Together with multiple sclerosis (MS) experts, biostatisticians and clinicians from across the globe, a UK HealthCare neurologist has helped compile an essential list of MS medications for patients in resource-poor settings.

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Multiple sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis (abbreviated MS, also known as disseminated sclerosis or encephalomyelitis disseminata) is an autoimmune disease in which the body's immune response attacks a person's central nervous system (brain and spinal cord), leading to demyelination. Disease onset usually occurs in young adults, and it is more common in females. It has a prevalence that ranges between 2 and 150 per 100,000. MS was first described in 1868 by Jean-Martin Charcot.

MS affects the ability of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord to communicate with each other. Nerve cells communicate by sending electrical signals called action potentials down long fibers called axons, which are wrapped in an insulating substance called myelin. In MS, the body's own immune system attacks and damages the myelin. When myelin is lost, the axons can no longer effectively conduct signals. The name multiple sclerosis refers to scars (scleroses—better known as plaques or lesions) in the white matter of the brain and spinal cord, which is mainly composed of myelin. Although much is known about the mechanisms involved in the disease process, the cause remains unknown. Theories include genetics or infections. Different environmental risk factors have also been found.

Almost any neurological symptom can appear with the disease, and often progresses to physical and cognitive disability and neuropsychiatric disorder. MS takes several forms, with new symptoms occurring either in discrete attacks (relapsing forms) or slowly accumulating over time (progressive forms). Between attacks, symptoms may go away completely, but permanent neurological problems often occur, especially as the disease advances.

There is no known cure for MS. Treatments attempt to return function after an attack, prevent new attacks, and prevent disability. MS medications can have adverse effects or be poorly tolerated, and many patients pursue alternative treatments, despite the lack of supporting scientific study. The prognosis is difficult to predict; it depends on the subtype of the disease, the individual patient's disease characteristics, the initial symptoms and the degree of disability the person experiences as time advances. Life expectancy of patients is nearly the same as that of the unaffected population.

This text uses material from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA