~ Could You Be the 1 In 800? ~
The statistics are overwhelming. How does one contract it? Is it genetic? Is it environmental? Are the symptoms definitive? The answers to those questions are still to be answered. Muscular Sclerosis (MS) is a disease that affects the body's central nervous system at the brain and spinal cord causing the myelin coating of the nerves to degenerate. This degeneration can eventually cause a progressive or permanent disability. Currently there is no cure.
There are approximately 4.5 million people worldwide that have been diagnosed with the disease, of which about 400,000 of them are in the United States. That means there are 200 new cases diagnosed each week. The average age of clinical onset is between the ages of 30-33 years and the average age of 37 years for diagnosis (most often from the onset to the diagnosis, there is a gap of several years). The risk of the general population contracting MS is 1 in 800.
MS is not a simple disease to diagnose because it affects everyone differently and has so many different potential symptoms. Very few of the symptoms are unique to MS. And even if one has some of the symptoms, it doesn't mean that they could have MS. Some of the symptoms may last for only a day or stay for months or even permanently. The frequency is also just as different. There are some that may only experience an exacerbation once every several years or it could occur dozens a times within one year.
Why is it a complicated disease? The symptoms are usually broken down into groupings: motor skills, visual, sensory, coordination and balance, Bowl, Bladder and Sexual, and Cognitive Difficulties and others. Let's take a look at some of the symptoms; fatigue, numbness or tingling, loss of or double vision, paralysis, loss of balance or coordination, foot drop, restless leg syndrome, bladder and bowl disfunction, stuttering or slurred speech, lack of focusing, heat sensitivity, difficulty swallowing, dizziness, and depression. That is one long list and it is not all of the symptoms. This is why it is such a complicated disease.
I will be walking in the Denver area MS Walk this coming Saturday. This link will connect you to my page if you would like to donate to the cause. It is a disease that I hold near and dear to me. By raising money for the research, eventually we may be able to wipe out this complicated disease altogether.
World MS Day is May 25, 2011
Event Details
Date: Saturday, May 7, 2011
Location: Denver City Park
Address: 2001 Steele Street, Denver, CO 80205
Registration Opens: 7:30 a.m.
Walk Begins: 9:30 a.m.
Walk Manager: Amanda Peterson
Contact Info: coloradowalkms@nmss.org or 303-698-7470
For more information and details on the MS Walk in Denver, visit their official website.
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