mssupport.net

taken from www.wikipedia.org

MS can cause a variety of symptoms, including changes in sensation (hypoesthesia), muscle weakness, abnormal muscle spasms, or difficulty to move; difficulties with coordination and balance (ataxia); problems in speech (Dysarthria) or swallowing (Dysphagia), visual problems (Nystagmus, optic neuritis, or diplopia), fatigue and acute or chronic pain syndromes, bladder and bowel difficulties, cognitive impairment, or emotional symptomatology (mainly depression).

The initial attacks are often transient, mild (or asymptomatic), and self-limited. They often do not prompt a health care visit and sometimes are only identified in retrospect once the diagnosis has been made based on further attacks. The most common initial symptoms reported are: changes in sensation in the arms, legs or face (33%), complete or partial vision loss (optic neuritis) (16%), weakness (13%), double vision (7%), unsteadiness when walking (5%), and balance problems (3%); but many rare initial symptoms have been reported such as aphasia or psychosis.^[3][4] Fifteen percent of individuals have multiple symptoms when they first seek medical attention.^[5] For some people the initial MS attack is preceded by infection, trauma, or strenuous physical effort.

Cognitive impairments are common (40 to 60 percent of patients)^[6] and are already present in the beginnings of the disease.^[7][8] Some of the most common declines are in recent memory, attention, processing speed, visual-spatial abilities and executive functions.^[9] Other cognitive-related symptoms are emotional instability, and fatigue, including purely neurological fatigue. The cognitive impairments in MS are usually mild; and only in 5% of patients can we speak of dementia. Nevertheless they are related with unemployment and reduced social interactions.^[10]

Emotional symptoms are also common and are thought to be both the normal response to having a debilitating disease and the result of damage to specific areas of the central nervous system that generate and control emotions. Clinical depression is the most common neuropsychiatric condition: lifetime depression prevalence rates of 40-50% and 12 month prevalence rates around 20% have been typically reported; being these figures considerably higher than those reported for sane people or with other chronic illnesses.^[11][12] Other feelings such as anger, anxiety, frustration, and hopelessness also appear frequently, and suicide is a very real threat since 15% of deaths in MS sufferers are due to this cause

taken from www.wikipedia.org
Multiple Sclerosis (abbreviated MS, also known as disseminated sclerosis or encephalomyelitis disseminata) is a chronic, inflammatory, demyelinating disease that affects the central nervous system (CNS). MS can cause a variety of symptoms, including changes in sensation, visual problems, muscle weakness, depression, difficulties with coordination and speech, severe fatigue, cognitive impairment, problems with balance, overheating, and pain. MS will cause impaired mobility and disability in more severe cases.

Multiple sclerosis affects neurons, the cells of the brain and spinal cord that carry information, create thought and perception, and allow the brain to control the body. Surrounding and protecting some of these neurons is a fatty layer known as the myelin sheath, which helps neurons carry electrical signals. MS causes gradual destruction of myelin (demyelination) and transection of neuron axons in patches throughout the brain and spinal cord. The name multiple sclerosis refers to the multiple scars (or scleroses) on the myelin sheaths. This scarring causes symptoms which vary widely depending upon which signals are interrupted.

The predominant theory today is that MS results from attacks by an individual’s immune system on the nervous system and it is therefore usually categorized as an autoimmune disease. There is a minority view that MS is not an autoimmune disease, but rather a metabolically dependent neurodegenerative disease. Although much is known about how MS causes damage, its exact cause remains unknown.

Multiple sclerosis may take several different forms, with new symptoms occurring either in discrete attacks or slowly accruing over time. Between attacks, symptoms may resolve completely, but permanent neurologic problems often persist, especially as the disease advances. MS currently does not have a cure, though several treatments are available that may slow the appearance of new symptoms.

MS primarily affects adults, with an age of onset typically between 20 and 40 years, and is more common in women than in men