MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS

AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE.

An AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE  is one in which the immune system, which should only target invading germs, turns on the body's own tissues :
diabetes mellitus type 1,
rheumatoid arthritis,
Multiple Sclerosis (MS) when the immunity system attacks myelin, the substance covering and protecting nerves in the central nervous system.
The reason for this reaction is unknown but it is thought that MS can be triggered by something in the environment, possibly an infectious agent.
The role of vitamin D as a protective agent against the development of Ms has been the focus of research.

SYMPTOMS:
Spasticity - muscle tone becomes greatly increased.
Bladder problems: frequency, urgency, hesitancy, incontinence;
Bowel problems: constipation, faecal incontinencce, weakness;
Visual problems: double vision, nystagmus;
Balance problems and dizziness, tremor and ataxia
Cognition problems; depression, mood swings
Speech and swallowing problems;

Almost 150 years after it was first desribed, MS is still a condition with many mysteries: no known cause, no means of prevention, and no cure - but there have been significant advances in understanding. The arrival of the first drugs had some effect on the understanding the disease activity; continuing discoveries about the nature of the immune system; knowledge of the involvement of genes in the development of disease; breakthroughs in stem cell technology.
This momentum offers the hope that MS will eventually be controlled. (Multiple Sclerosis Trust).

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