Email a friend
Print articleHealth A-Z
MS - Introduction
NHS Choices Medical Reference
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is the most common neurological condition in young adults in the UK, affecting around 85,000 people.
There are three main types of MS:
What treatments work for multiple sclerosis?
If you have multiple sclerosis (MS), the nerves in your brain and spinal cord slowly lose their coating. Over time, they become damaged and may stop working properly. At present, there's no cure for MS. But you can have treatments to improve your symptoms, slow down the disease, and help you keep living a full life. Doctors can't say for certain what course your MS will take, so it's hard to know what treatments you'll need. A lot depends on which type of MS you have. (For more, see Types of multiple...
Read the What treatments work for multiple sclerosis? article > >
- relapsing remitting MS
- secondary progressive MS
- primary progressive MS
About the disease
MS is a condition of the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord). The central nervous system controls the body's actions and activities, such as movement and balance.
Each nerve fibre in the central nervous system is surrounded by a substance called myelin. Myelin helps messages from the brain to travel quickly and smoothly to the rest of the body.
In MS, the myelin becomes damaged. This disrupts the transfer of these messages.
Who is affected
MS can occur at any age, but symptoms are mostly first seen between the ages of 20 and 40. Women are more than twice as likely to develop MS as men.
Outlook
MS is a lifelong condition, but it is not terminal. Most people with MS can expect to live as long as someone without the condition. However, a minority of patients (about 20%) with MS have a considerably shortened life.
MS Topics
Health information from our sponsors/advertorials
©2009-2012 WebMD UK Limited and Boots UK Limited. All rights reserved.
BootsWebMD does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See additional information.