It's also common early on in the disease to experience long intervals between relapses. Later, as MS progresses, people may have difficulty with tremors, coordination, and walking. They may find that their relapses become more frequent, and that they are less able to recover from them.
In many patients, over a span of 5 to 15 years, the attacks begin more indolently, persist more chronically and remit less completely, gradually transforming into a pattern of steady deterioration rather than episodic flares. This pattern is referred to as secondary progressive MS.
On average, the lifespan for people with MS is about five to 10 years shorter than for the general population, but this gap is getting shorter as treatments and care continue to improve.
“Fulminate MS” is a rapidly progressive disease course with severe relapses within five years after diagnosis; also known as “malignant MS” or “Marburg MS,” this form of very active MS may need to be treated more aggressively than other forms.
Yes, MS can cause nausea in a number of different ways: MS dizziness and vertigo is likely to make you feel nauseous. Many people with MS experience symptoms related to digestion, including dyspepsia, which causes an uncomfortable feeling of fullness and bloating along with pain.
MS fatigue, steroid therapy, and depression can all lead to unwanted weight in people with MS. Though these factors are not your fault, you owe it to yourself to take control of your weight. Overeating can increase MS symptoms or health conditions, such as: fatigue.
Multiple sclerosis is caused by your immune system mistakenly attacking the brain and nerves. It's not clear why this happens but it may be a combination of genetic and environmental factors.
“MS pain that commonly interferes with sleep is neuropathic pain — often described as burning, shooting, searing, or deeply aching. This pain can be relentless and is often worse at night.”
While many with MS will experience depression or anxiety at some point, more rarely, some people experience changes to their emotions or behaviour that don't seem to make sense, or that they aren't able to control.
MS can cause significant anxiety, distress, anger, and frustration from the moment of its very first symptoms. The uncertainty and unpredictability associated with MS is one of its most distressing aspects. In fact, anxiety is at least as common in MS as depression.
Can I have multiple sclerosis for years and not know it? Yes. MS can go undetected for years. Research has suggested that many patients experience MS-related symptoms and signs several years before receiving a definite diagnosis of the disease.
Is MS hereditary? MS is not directly inherited from parent to child. There's no single gene that causes it. Over 200 genes might affect your chances of getting MS.
MS itself is rarely fatal, but complications may arise from severe MS, such as chest or bladder infections, or swallowing difficulties. The average life expectancy for people with MS is around 5 to 10 years lower than average, and this gap appears to be getting smaller all the time.
Many people with MS choose to use wheelchairs or scooters from time to time or to do certain things, perhaps because of symptoms like fatigue or weakness, or to conserve energy.
The basic cause of MS has yet to be discovered. The disease has been linked to a number of risk factors, including smoking and stress. But more studies are also pointing to the roles of female hormones, vitamin D, inflammation and even obesity.
An MS relapse starts when nerves in the brain and spinal cord get inflamed (swollen or irritated). Then, those nerves lose the coating, called myelin, that surrounds and protects them. A plaque forms around them instead. A plaque in the brain or spinal cord changes the electrical signals that zip up and down nerves.
Symptoms of the final stages of MS vary from person to person. But the condition is considered end-stage when it leads to life-threatening complications. Some of these complications include: Breathing problems and respiratory infections, which can cause you to keep getting pneumonia.
While living with multiple sclerosis is a challenge, palliative care can make a big difference. Some palliative care treatments for MS include medications and techniques relieve muscle spasms, calm nerves, ease depression and manage pain. Palliative care teams treat your specific symptoms, whatever they may be.