Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple Sclerosis is a condition where the nerves of the central nervous system degenerate. Myelin is the insulation sheath (white matter) surrounding the nerve cells enabling them to conduct impulses between the brain and other parts of the body. In Multiple Sclerosis, inflammation occurs which causes the Myelin to finally disappear. This results in very slow motion of electric impulses along the nerves. This also causes the nerves to become damaged. As more and more nerves get affected, the patient begins to experience difficulties with functions that are controlled by the nervous system, including, vision, walking, speech, memory and writing. Children as well as adults can be affected with Multiple Sclerosis.

Causes

The main cause for Multiple Sclerosis is still unknown. Researchers believe that the virus may cause the immune system to believe that Myelin is a foreign body which forces it to be attacked. The attack by the immune system on tissues that it would otherwise protect is known as Autoimmunity. Multiple Sclerosis is thought to be a disease of autoimmunity. After the onset of the assault by the immune system, some of the damaged Myelin may be repaired. Other damaged tissue disappear and nerves get stripped off Myelin. Scarring also occurs and some of the materiel gets deposited in the scars causing Plaque.

Symptoms

There are different kinds of forms of Multiple Sclerosis. During an attack of the immune system onto body tissues, a patient would experience sudden deterioration in normal activities like vision, walking, speech, memory and writing. These symptoms usually last for more than 24 hours and generally more than a few weeks.

Kinds

There are different clinical forms of Multiple Sclerosis.

Relapsing-Remitting Multiple Sclerosis is the most common kind. Patients here experience a series of attacks followed by disappearance of the symptoms. There may be a gap of a few weeks or decades before there is a relapse of the attack.

Primary-Progressive Multiple Sclerosis is a continuous series of attacks that the patient experiences with a gradual decline in the patient’s physical abilities.

Secondary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis causes more damage to a patient who has already experienced a Relapsing-Remitting Multiple Sclerosis. Here the relapses are rare but are accompanied with a higher degree of damage.

Procedure

There are many pointers for a patient and a physician to consider when treating Multiple Sclerosis. There would be goals included so as to reduce the number of attacks, improve recovery from attacks and attempt to slow down the progression of the disease. All these can be achieved by administering disease modifying drugs and drugs for specific symptoms. Usually, neurologists would opt for the disease modifying drugs once the disease has been diagnosed.

Risks

There could be certain degree of side effects from the drug therapy that is administered to the patient.

Recovery

Constant counseling would benefit both the patient and their families to help deal with the disease. An initial drug therapy would be started off which may have side-effects to the patient. Usually it is these side-effects that dissuade a patient from continuing the treatment. An understanding of the possible side effects would be the key to deal with this problem.

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