MS Causes & Treatments

Special thanks to Andy Primm for the first request for an informational blog! While you can find lots of information at The National MS Society's website, I will do my best to tell you all about the causes and treatments of Multiple Sclerosis (MS).

First, let's talk about what MS is. According to the website above, "Multiple sclerosis (or MS) is a chronic, often disabling disease that attacks the central nervous system (CNS), which is made up of the brain, spinal cord, and optic nerves. Symptoms may be mild, such as numbness in the limbs, or severe, such as paralysis or loss of vision. The progress, severity, and specific symptoms of MS are unpredictable and vary from one person to another." There are four different courses that people with MS may experience, ranging from mild to severe.

1. Relapsing-Remitting: With this kind of MS, people find that they will have "clearly defined attacks of worsening neurologic function." The attacks are usually called relapses, and are followed either by patial recovery periods or complete remission. About 85% of MS patients are intially diagnosed with this type.
2. Primary-Progressive: Without any notable remissions, this type is characterized by slowly worsening function from the beginning. While rates of progression might vary from person to person, the disease may plateau or improve occasionally.
3. Secondary-Progressive: This type starts with the Relapsing-Remitting type, but a secondary disease type develops which worsens progressively. Without medication, about half of the first type develop Secondary-Progressive MS.
4. Progressive-Relapsing: This one is pretty rare (only 5% of MS patients have this). It steadily worsens and has attacks of worsening neurological function. Unfortunately, there are no remissions.

Apparently, there is no known cause for MS, although scientists are working on it. That's why donations and grants to research are so important, so scientists can prevent, treat, and possibly even cure it. Factors/Causes being studied include:

• Immunologic: MS involves an autoimmune process, in which research is being done to find ways of preventing this progress, although researchers and scientists don't yet have the entire picture figured out.
• Environmental: Studies show that MS occurs in places further from the equator, according to the website (which neglects to say exactly how far one has to be from the equator for this to be likely). Strangely enough, the website says "Studies of migration patterns have shown that people born in an area of the world with a high risk of MS who then move to an area with a lower risk before the age of 15, acquire the risk of their new area. Such data suggest that exposure to some environmental agent that occurs before puberty may predispose a person to develop MS later on." Some scientists think sunlight helps prevent MS, as it helps produce vitamin D, which in turn benefits a person's autoimmune function. Other scientists study clusters of above-average numbers of people with MS that live near each other in an attempt to see if there are any environmental factors that may contribute to the disease.
• Infectious: Some viruses and bacteria cause effects similar to MS, so it's possible that these disease may trigger MS.
• Genetic: Apparently, "MS is not hereditary in a strict sense, having a first-degree relative such as a parent or sibling with MS increases an individual's risk of developing the disease several-fold above the risk for the general population." This goes into genetic studies and predisposition to environmental triggers to MS, though more research into genetics is the only way to know for sure.

Disproven causes include: aspartame (the artificial sweetener in many diet sodas), allergies, physical trauma, exposure to heavy metals, and small animals.

Like I mentioned earlier, there is no cure yet for MS, though there are now ways to modify the type (or "course") of MS mentioned above, manage symptoms, improve function and safety, and treat the attacks and relapses. Medication, combined with therapy, assistive devices, and the person caring for his- or herself, can go a long way in fighting MS.

For a more information, along with a full list of disease-modifying agents, click here. If you or a loved one are looking for an MS support group, visit this website.

If you have anymore questions, please feel free to ask. Or, if you would like me to write a blog about anything else health-related, please leave a comment, and I will do my best to blog about it in a timely manner. Thank you, Andy & the rest of my readers. Have a great rest of your day!