News tagged with multiple sclerosis
Researchers develop gene therapy to boost brain repair for demyelinating diseases
(Medical Xpress) -- Our bodies are full of tiny superheroesantibodies that fight foreign invaders, cells that regenerate, and structures that ensure our systems run smoothly. One such structure is myelina ...
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Feb 09, 2012 |
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How autoreactive T cells slip through the cracks
Immune cells capable of attacking healthy organs "see" their targets differently than do protective immune cells that attack viruses, according to work published online this week in the Journal of Experimental Medicine.
Feb 06, 2012 |
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Muscling in on multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis (MS), a neurodegenerative disease, causes periodic attacks of neurologic symptoms such as limb weakness and mobility defects. And while MS patients' walking abilities and muscle strength are examined on ...
Jan 26, 2012 |
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New standard for vitamin D testing to ensure accurate test results
At a time of increasing concern about low vitamin D levels in the world's population and increased use of blood tests for the vitamin, scientists are reporting development of a much-needed reference material ...
Chemistry / Analytical Chemistry
Jan 25, 2012 |
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Novartis drug investigated after 11 deaths
A multiple sclerosis drug made by industry giant Novartis is under investigation after at least 11 patients taking the medicine died.
Medicine & Health / Medications
Jan 20, 2012 |
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A first: Brain support cells from umbilical cord stem cells
For the first time ever, stem cells from umbilical cords have been converted into other types of cells, which may eventually lead to new treatment options for spinal cord injuries and multiple sclerosis, among other nervous ...
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Jan 17, 2012 |
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Study reports greater brain activation after cognitive rehabilitation for MS
Neuroscientists at Kessler Foundation have documented increased cerebral activation in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) following memory retraining using the modified Story Memory Technique (mSMT).
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Jan 17, 2012 |
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Multiple sclerosis research links brain activity to sharper cognitive decline
(Medical Xpress) -- When it comes to communication in the brain, more is usually better. But now scientists have linked increased communication in a network of brain regions to more severe mental impairment in patients with ...
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Jan 10, 2012 |
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Spasticity gene finding provides clues to causes of nerve cell degeneration
The discovery of a gene that causes a form of hereditary spastic paraplegia (HSP) may provide scientists with an important insight into what causes axons, the stems of our nerve cells, to degenerate in conditions such as ...
Jan 09, 2012 |
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Hopes for reversing age-associated effects in MS patients
New research highlights the possibility of reversing ageing in the central nervous system for multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. The study is published today, 06 January, in the journal Cell Stem Cell.
Jan 06, 2012 |
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Diabetic mice provide a surprising breakthrough for multiple sclerosis research
(Medical Xpress) -- In humans, active periods of the debilitating disease Multiple Sclerosis (MS) can last for mere minutes or extend to weeks at a time. They're caused by lesions in the brain that develop, ...
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Jan 05, 2012 |
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Researchers link multiple sclerosis to different area of brain
Radiology researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) have found evidence that multiple sclerosis affects an area of the brain that controls cognitive, sensory and motor functioning ...
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Dec 22, 2011 |
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Researcher contends multiple sclerosis is not a disease of the immune system
An article to be published Friday (Dec. 23) in the December 2011 issue of The Quarterly Review of Biology argues that multiple sclerosis, long viewed as primarily an autoimmune disease, is not actually a disease of the im ...
Dec 22, 2011 |
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Genetic diversity: Crucial for our survival in many ways
(Medical Xpress) -- Thanks to the sequencing of the 27 known human interferon genes, researchers from the Institut Pasteur and the CNRS reconstruct the genetic history of these proteins so central for our immune system, and ...
Dec 20, 2011 |
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Using powerful MRI to track iron levels in brain could be new way to monitor progression of MS
Medical researchers at the University of Alberta have discovered a new way to track the progression of multiple sclerosis (MS) in those living with the disease, by using a powerful, triple strength MRI to track increasing ...
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Dec 15, 2011 |
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Multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis (abbreviated MS, also known as disseminated sclerosis or encephalomyelitis disseminata) is an autoimmune disease in which the body's immune response attacks a person's central nervous system (brain and spinal cord), leading to demyelination. Disease onset usually occurs in young adults, and it is more common in females. It has a prevalence that ranges between 2 and 150 per 100,000. MS was first described in 1868 by Jean-Martin Charcot.
MS affects the ability of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord to communicate with each other. Nerve cells communicate by sending electrical signals called action potentials down long fibers called axons, which are wrapped in an insulating substance called myelin. In MS, the body's own immune system attacks and damages the myelin. When myelin is lost, the axons can no longer effectively conduct signals. The name multiple sclerosis refers to scars (scleroses—better known as plaques or lesions) in the white matter of the brain and spinal cord, which is mainly composed of myelin. Although much is known about the mechanisms involved in the disease process, the cause remains unknown. Theories include genetics or infections. Different environmental risk factors have also been found.
Almost any neurological symptom can appear with the disease, and often progresses to physical and cognitive disability and neuropsychiatric disorder. MS takes several forms, with new symptoms occurring either in discrete attacks (relapsing forms) or slowly accumulating over time (progressive forms). Between attacks, symptoms may go away completely, but permanent neurological problems often occur, especially as the disease advances.
There is no known cure for MS. Treatments attempt to return function after an attack, prevent new attacks, and prevent disability. MS medications can have adverse effects or be poorly tolerated, and many patients pursue alternative treatments, despite the lack of supporting scientific study. The prognosis is difficult to predict; it depends on the subtype of the disease, the individual patient's disease characteristics, the initial symptoms and the degree of disability the person experiences as time advances. Life expectancy of patients is nearly the same as that of the unaffected population.
For more information about Multiple sclerosis, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.