One thing that has been ascertained, however, is that women are diagnosed with MS at a rate two to three times higher than men. As little as a century ago, men were diagnosed with the disease at nearly the same rate over women as women are now diagnosed over men.
While there is no scientific reasoning as to why men were once diagnosed three times more than women and now the trend is reversed, anecdotal evidence suggests that women presenting with what we now know as symptoms of relapsing-remitting MS were often discounted and told it was all in their head.
So what is it like to be a man living with a disease that affects nearly three times more women than men? How does it feel to be a man living with MS? With very few exceptions, I guess you could ask a woman as well as you could ask me. Multiple sclerosis is an incurable, degenerative, immune-mediated neurological disease that interferes with the transmission of nerve signals between the brain and spinal cord and other parts of the body.
MS is a disease with unpredictable symptoms that can vary in intensity. While some people experience fatigue and numbness, severe cases of MS can cause paralysis , vision loss, and diminished brain function.
MS is a lifelong disease, but it can be managed and researchers are continually looking for more effective treatments. Symptoms of a CIS episode could include:. Primary symptoms of MS stem from the damage to the protective nerve covering, the myelin. Your doctors can help you manage these symptoms using medication , occupational therapy , and physical therapy.
Visual problems are one of the most common symptoms of MS. Inflammation affects the optic nerve and disrupts vision. This can cause blurred vision or loss of vision. Sometimes the cranial nerves or the brainstem can be involved, causing eye movement problems or double vision.
These are three common vision symptoms of MS:. You may not notice the vision problems immediately. With optic neuritis, pain when you look up or to one side also can accompany vision loss. There are a variety of ways to cope with MS-related vision changes. The sensory nerves in the spinal cord can be affected by demyelination, causing diminished sensation when you touch something, which can affect your ability to walk or do things with your hands.
You can also have paresthesias sensations like numbness, tingling, or burning. Tingling sensations and numbness are one of the most common warning signs of MS.
Common sites of numbness include the face, arms, legs, and fingers. Chronic pain and involuntary muscle spasms are also common with MS. Pain can be a direct result of the demyelination or by the symptoms themselves causing secondary pain. Types of MS pain could include neuropathic pain. This acute pain is caused by nerves miscommunicating signals to the brain.
Examples include:. MS can also cause chronic neuropathic pain, where the acute pain mentioned above can also be experienced on a more ongoing basis. This may include dysesthesias painful sensations in the limbs or pruritis , which causes itching, tingling, and similar sensations.
Muscle stiffness or spasms spasticity are also common. You might experience stiff muscles or joints as well as uncontrollable, painful jerking movements of the extremities. The legs are most often affected, but back pain is also common. Slurred speech and trouble swallowing, particularly in later stages of the condition, can also occur due to motor issues. Unexplained fatigue and weakness affect many people living with MS. Fatigue is often related to the number of lesions in the brain and to inflammation.
Weakness can develop due to muscle atrophy muscles shrinking from lack or use or due to demyelination of the nerves. Chronic fatigue occurs when nerves deteriorate in the spinal column. Usually, the fatigue appears suddenly and lasts for weeks before improving. The weakness is most noticeable in the legs at first. People who have MS can have intermittent fatigue, recurrent fatigue, or constant chronic fatigue. Dizziness and problems with coordination and balance can decrease the mobility of someone with MS.
This can contribute to problems with your gait. People with MS often feel lightheaded, dizzy, or as if their surroundings are spinning vertigo. There are many possible causes of neurological symptoms. When MS is considered as a potential diagnosis, other causes must be excluded — through the tools and tests outlined below — before an MS diagnosis is considered definitive. While this process of exclusion may be quick for some, it can also take much longer , with repeat testing sometimes needed.
Making the diagnosis of MS as quickly and accurately as possible is important for several reasons: You are living with frightening and uncomfortable symptoms and need to know the reason for your discomfort. Getting the diagnosis allows you to begin the adjustment process and relieves worries about other diseases such as cancer. Since we now know that permanent neurologic damage can occur even in the earliest stages of MS, it is important to confirm the diagnosis so that you can start the appropriate treatment s as early in the disease process as possible.
In order to make a diagnosis of MS, the physician must: Find evidence of damage in at least two separate areas of the central nervous system CNS , which includes the brain, spinal cord and optic nerves AND Find evidence that the damage occurred at different points in time AND Rule out all other possible diagnoses The Revised McDonald Criteria, published In by the International Panel on the Diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis, include specific guidelines for using MRI and cerebrospinal fluid analysis to speed the diagnostic process.
Medical history and neurologic exam Your healthcare provider: Takes a careful history to identify any past or present symptoms that might be caused by MS.
Gathers information about birthplace, family history, environmental exposures, history of other illnesses and places traveled that might provide further clues. Performs a comprehensive neurologic exam, which includes tests of cranial nerves vision, hearing, facial sensation, strength, swallowing , sensation, reflexes, coordination, walking and balance. All partners, whether they are a neurologist or social worker, have a strong relationship with the Society and connect their patients to the information, resources and support they need to live their best lives with MS.
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