Youve likely heard ofmultiple sclerosis (M.S.
), anautoimmune diseasethat damages nerves in the brain and spinal cord.
As a complicated and relatively invisible disease, M.S.
Hiroshi Watanabe / Getty Images
is frequently misunderstood or overlooked.
But given that M.S.
can cause irreversible neurological issues, its important to understand signs of M.S.
Multiple sclerosis happens when the immune system attacks nerves in the brain and spinal cord.
All of this can cause severedisabilityover time.
follows a classic relapse-remission pattern.
This punch in of M.S.
can eventually enter a progressive phase, wherein the disease advances and symptoms continually worsen.
This is known as secondary-progressive M.S.
A smaller subset of people with M.S.
have what’s called primary-progressive M.S.
The reason for that still remains one of the major mysteries of the disease.
The cause of multiple sclerosis is still unknown.
Based on current research, there seem to be genetic, hormonal, and environmental factors at play.
risk and lowvitamin Dexposure in utero and early in life.
(Low vitamin D levels when you have M.S.
are also associated with higher M.S.
This vitamin D connection may help explain the latitude-based geographical trend: M.S.
That said, your location appears to have the chance to affect your M.S.
risk only in your first 15 years of life, theMerck Manualexplains.
Detecting early symptoms of M.S.
Dr. Vollmer calls M.S.
a relativelyinvisible diseasesince many of the symptoms arent obvious to an outside observer.
“They’re often subtle enough that health care providers miss it,” Dr. Vollmer adds.
He also notes that when people present with their first M.S.
Another thing to keep in mind is that, in general, everyone experiences M.S.
differently, at any stage of the disease, according to theMayo Clinic.
With all of that said, here are some of the most common early signs of M.S.
women should look out for.
The exact cause of fatigue with M.S.
is still unknownanother mysterybut there are a few theories that could explain it.
One has to do with the activation of theimmune system; people with M.S.
Another theory is that people with M.S.
Its one of thevarious diagnostic toolsused when it comes to M.S.
Alongside fatigue,depressioncan be an early sign of M.S.
Depression can happen in people with M.S.
First, it can be a direct result of how M.S.
(Its also a symptom on this list that can exacerbate fatigue, Hughes points out.)
For that reason, its often most helpful to look at depression as a flag for M.S.
particularly when its in combination with other symptoms on this list.
While sleep disturbances in M.S.
These sensations are symptoms of thedemyelinationin the brain, which is a central part of M.S.
that we talked about earlier.
Impairments of muscle function are a central feature of M.S.
The key with weakness (and with all of these early M.S.
signs) is to look for something that feels new and unusual for your baseline.
According to theMayo Clinic, one of the earliest indications of M.S.
It usually affects only one eye and leads to pain with eye movement and temporary vision loss.
Sexual dysfunction, like having a hard time reaching orgasm, can happen with M.S.
“because there’s not enough sensory input back to the spinal cord,” Dr. Vollmer explains.
Not to mention, many of the symptoms of M.S.
Multiple sclerosis is treatable, and the earlier, the better.
symptoms, says Hughes.
