7 Major Questions About Multiple Sclerosis That Have Been Answered In The Last 10 Years
Multiple Sclerosis
is a chronic autoimmune disease that affects the central nervous system. MS results in the body’s immune system mistakenly attacking the protective nerve lining around the brain and spinal cord known as myelin. MS can lead to swelling, leaving scar tissue and lesions on the brain and along the spinal cord and breaking down the myelin lining over time, resulting in a breakdown of communication between the brain and the rest of the body. This can lead to a variety of symptoms MS patients may experience such as fatigue, tingling and numbness, vision issues, muscle spasms, and cognitive problems, among others.
2.3 million
Currently, MS affects over 2.3 million people worldwide, with the U.S. accounting for 400,000 of those cases. Women are more than twice as likely as men to develop MS. Although the number of cases has been increasing, in the last decade there have been major breakthroughs surrounding both the treatment and diagnosis of MS. Here are 8 questions answered about MS you might not have known.
