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Multiple sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease resulting in damage to myelin which is the insulating covers of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. As a demyelinating disease, MS disrupts the nervous system's ability to transmit signals, resulting in a range of signs and symptoms, including physical, mental, and sometimes psychiatric problems. Symptoms include double vision, vision loss, eye pain, muscle weakness, and loss of sensation or coordination.

MS takes several forms of presentation:

* New symptoms can occur as an isolated attack; where the patient experiences neurological symptoms suddenly and then gets better (relapsing form) called relapsing- remitting MS which is seen in 85% of patients. * In other patients symptoms can slowly get worse over time (progressive form) called primarily progressive MS seen in 15% of patients. * The patients with relapsing- remitting MS can experience gradual worsening of their symptoms following the attacks, this subtype is called secondary progressive MS. In relapsing forms of MS, symptoms may disappear completely between attacks, although some permanent neurological problems often remain, especially as the disease advances. In progressive forms of MS, the body's function slowly deteriorates once symptoms manifest and will steadily worsen if left untreated. * A patient might have a single attack and not meet the full criteria for being diagnosed with MS this is called a clinically isolated syndrome.

While its cause is unclear, the underlying mechanism is thought to be due to either destruction by the immune system or inactivation of myelin-producing cells. Proposed causes for this include immune dysregulation, genetics, and environmental factors, such as viral infections. The McDonald criteria are a frequently updated set of guidelines used to establish an MS diagnosis.

There is no cure for MS. Current treatments aim to reduce inflammation and resulting symptoms from acute flares and prevent further attacks with disease-modifying medications, aiming at slowing prognosis and improving quality of life. Physical therapy and occupational therapy, along with patient-centered symptom management, can help with people's ability to function. The long-term outcome is difficult to predict; better outcomes are more often seen in women, those who develop the disease early in life, those with a relapsing course, and those who initially experienced few attacks.

New evidence suggests an important role of lifestyle factors in the prognosis of MS, where multiple lifestyle factors (including smoking, alcohol consumption, exercise, diet and vitamin D levels..) have been linked to affecting the EDSS score depending on patients' age, gender and disease duration.

MS is the most common immune-mediated disorder affecting the central nervous system (CNS). In 2020, about 2.8 million people were affected by MS globally, with rates varying widely in different regions and among different populations. The disease usually begins between the ages of 20 and 50 and is almost three times more common in females than in males (3:1 ratio).

MS was first described in 1868 by French neurologist Jean-Martin Charcot. The name "multiple sclerosis" is short for multiple cerebro-spinal sclerosis, which refers to the numerous glial scars (or sclerae – essentially plaques or lesions) that develop on the white matter of the brain and spinal cord. Provided by Wikipedia