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Multiple Sclerosis
A guide for patients and carers
What is multiple sclerosis?
Multiple sclerosis is a disease of the central nervous system. The central nervous system is made up of the brain and the spinal cord, which goes from the brain down the back inside the backbone. The other part of the nervous system is called the peripheral nervous system and consists of ordinary nerves which leave the skull and spinal column to go to all parts of the body. Sometimes, nerves close to the brain such as the optic nerve, which provides vision, are affected in multiple sclerosis. These nerves are still part of the central nervous system.
In multiple sclerosis the outer coating of many of the nerve fibres is damaged. This coating is called the myelin sheath and is essential for the nerves to work properly. (It is rather like the plastic sheath around a copper wire; the wire conducts electricity efficiently unless the plastic sheath is damaged).
The body may repair the damage to some extent but often a small scar is left and the nerve function is not as efficient as it was originally. Because the condition may affect lots of different areas within the central nervous system it is described as multiple, and the small scars which arise are sometimes described as areas of sclerosis. This is how we get the name multiple sclerosis.
In multiple sclerosis the outer coating of many of the nerve fibres is damaged. This coating is called the myelin sheath and is essential for the nerves to work properly. (It is rather like the plastic sheath around a copper wire; the wire conducts electricity efficiently unless the plastic sheath is damaged).
The body may repair the damage to some extent but often a small scar is left and the nerve function is not as efficient as it was originally. Because the condition may affect lots of different areas within the central nervous system it is described as multiple, and the small scars which arise are sometimes described as areas of sclerosis. This is how we get the name multiple sclerosis.
What causes multiple sclerosis?
Doctors do not know what causes multiple sclerosis, but it may be due to a fault in the body’s immune system. The immune system defends us against germs (bacteria and viruses), but sometimes goes wrong and damages healthy parts of the body - in the case of multiple sclerosis, the myelin sheath. Doctors also don’t know what starts the condition off in the first place. Over the years many suggestions have been made, including different sorts of infections or poisons entering the body, but the answer is still a mystery.
Can multiple sclerosis be prevented?
At the moment there is no known way of preventing multiple sclerosis.
Why me?
Multiple sclerosis is a relatively common disease and affects about one in 750 of the British population. It seems to appear without any warning and there is no known reason why the condition affects one person rather than anybody else. It most often affects young adults; over 70 per cent of affected people experience their first symptoms between the ages of 20 and 40.
Is multiple sclerosis an inherited disease?
Multiple sclerosis usually affects people at random without any apparent reason. It is not an inherited disease, but some people with multiple sclerosis can identify somebody else in their family background that has also had the disease. Since this occurs in rather more cases than could be explained by pure chance, there is obviously a small part of the puzzle which leads to the development of MS which can be transmitted from one generation to the next.
Is multiple sclerosis (MS) the same thing as disseminated sclerosis (DS)?
Some years ago doctors in the United States used to talk about multiple sclerosis whereas doctors in Britain used to talk about disseminated sclerosis. The two conditions are exactly the same and most doctors now talk about multiple sclerosis or MS.
Doctors do not know what causes multiple sclerosis, but it may be due to a fault in the body’s immune system. The immune system defends us against germs (bacteria and viruses), but sometimes goes wrong and damages healthy parts of the body - in the case of multiple sclerosis, the myelin sheath. Doctors also don’t know what starts the condition off in the first place. Over the years many suggestions have been made, including different sorts of infections or poisons entering the body, but the answer is still a mystery.
Can multiple sclerosis be prevented?
At the moment there is no known way of preventing multiple sclerosis.
Why me?
Multiple sclerosis is a relatively common disease and affects about one in 750 of the British population. It seems to appear without any warning and there is no known reason why the condition affects one person rather than anybody else. It most often affects young adults; over 70 per cent of affected people experience their first symptoms between the ages of 20 and 40.
Is multiple sclerosis an inherited disease?
Multiple sclerosis usually affects people at random without any apparent reason. It is not an inherited disease, but some people with multiple sclerosis can identify somebody else in their family background that has also had the disease. Since this occurs in rather more cases than could be explained by pure chance, there is obviously a small part of the puzzle which leads to the development of MS which can be transmitted from one generation to the next.
Is multiple sclerosis (MS) the same thing as disseminated sclerosis (DS)?
Some years ago doctors in the United States used to talk about multiple sclerosis whereas doctors in Britain used to talk about disseminated sclerosis. The two conditions are exactly the same and most doctors now talk about multiple sclerosis or MS.
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Page 2 of 9
Contents
- Introduction
- What is multiple sclerosis?
- What are the symptoms of multiple sclerosis?
- How do doctors make the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis?
- How does the disease progress?
- What is the treatment for multiple sclerosis?
- Other sorts of treatment which have been tried in the past
- Questions and answers
- Other organisations that may be able to help
