MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS
Click here to download a pledge sheet.
Multiple sclerosis is a chronic, often disabling disease of the central nervous system that generally strikes people between the ages of 20 and 40. Symptoms can range from numbness in the limbs to paralysis or loss of vision. The progress, severity, and specific symptoms of MS in any one person cannot yet be predicted, but advances in research and treatments are giving hope to those affected by the disease.
NMSS provides programs and services that make life better for the third of a million Americans with multiple sclerosis and their families and friends. In the Greater Illinois region, there are more than 11,000 people with MS. The Greater Illinois Chapter supports a wide array of local programs and services for people with MS and their families designed to inform and empower people to maximize their health and independence.
HOW IS IT CAUSED?
Our bodies contain a fatty substance called myelin which surrounds and protects nerve fibers of the brain and spinal cord (the central nervous system) similar to insulation protecting electrical wires. In MS, there is a breakdown in the myelin sheathing. When any part of this myelin sheathing is destroyed, nerve impulses to and from the brain are distorted or interrupted.
The result is multiple sclerosis, or MS - multiple because many areas of the brain and spinal cord are affected; sclerosis because "scleroses" or hardened patches of scar tissue may form over the damaged myelin.
WHAT ARE ITS SYMPTOMS?
Symptoms of MS vary greatly. They may include tingling sensations, numbness, slurred speech, blurred or double vision, muscle weakness, poor coordination, unusual fatigue, muscle tightness or spasticity, problems with bladder, bowel or sexual function, and paralysis. Occasionally, there may be mental changes such as forgetfulness or confusion. These symptoms may occur in any combination, may come and go, and may vary from very mild to very severe.
WHAT IS THE GENERAL PATTERN OF THE DISEASE?
At present, there is no way to predict when or even if attacks of the disease will occur. Symptoms not only vary greatly from person to person but may also vary from time to time in the same person.
The most typical pattern of MS is marked by periods of active disease or attacks, called exacerbations or relapses, followed by quiet periods called remissions.
Some people have few attacks and little if any disability over time. Others have what is called "relapsing-remitting" disease. This means they have exacerbations, which take place unpredictably, followed by periods of partial or total remission, which may last months or even years. Still others experience a "chronic-progressive" disease course with steadily worsening symptoms and no attacks or remissions. Thus, the disease ranges from very mild to intermittent to steadily progressive.
Because MS affects individuals so differently, it is difficult to make generalizations about the extent of disability any one person may sustain. Statistics suggest that two out of three people with MS remain ambulatory over their lifetimes, but many of them will need a cane or other assistive device.
WHO GETS MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS?
MS most often strikes people who are in their twenties or thirties - young adults who are just starting their lives. Women develop it at a rate more than double that of men.
The disease is most frequently found among people in colder climates. Scientists don't understand why this is so, but studies strongly suggest that where a person was born and lived during his of her first fifteen years strongly influences the likelihood of developing MS.
Studies also indicate that genetic factor make certain individuals more susceptible to the disease, but there is no evidence that MS is directly inherited.
IS IT EASILY DIAGNOSED?
MS is not always easy to detect or diagnose because symptoms tend to come and go, because other diseases of the central nervous system have some of the same warning signs, and because no single neurological or laboratory test can definitively confirm or rule out MS. Thus people may be told they have "probable" or "possible" MS.
Recent advances in medical imaging, particularly Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) technology, are helping to clarify diagnosis. To make a conclusive or definitive diagnosis, two factors must be shown: there must be evidence of many patches of scar tissue in different parts of the central nervous system, and there must have been at least two separate exacerbations of the disease. A definite diagnosis can take several months. Sometimes it takes years.
CAN MS BE TREATED?
Yes, to a degree. Much can be done to help people function at their best level on a day-to-day basis, and some treatments may reduce both the frequency and severity of relapses.
There are also medications that provide for symptoms. Spasticity, bowel and urinary distress, pain, fatigue, and other problems may be eased with medication.
Physical therapy, exercise, attention to diet, adequate rest, and counseling to decrease emotional stress may also be extremely valuable in helping a person remain independent and able to lead a full life. Prompt management of symptoms is important. They should be discussed with a knowledgeable physician.
CAN MS BE CURED?
The answer is no - not yet. The cause and the cure are the subject of intensive research on an international scale. Some 200 research grants and fellowships funded by the National MS Society are in progress each year. Knowledge about diseases of the central nervous system is growing quickly, and there is an air of optimism among MS researchers everywhere.
National Multiple Sclerosis Society
Today is
for more information contact: Ken Adams
SKYDIVERS FOR M.S.
c/o KEN ADAMS
P.O. BOX 760
HINCKLEY, IL. 60520
