All About Spinal Sclerosis
Spinal sclerosis is a more recent name for the disease that was long known as Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Many consider spinal sclerosis a more accurate name for the disease. If multiple sclerosis doesn’t ring a bell, you might remember that the actor Michael J. Fox—the star of the 80’s TV hit, Family Ties, and the 90’s hit, Spin City—was diagnosed with MS and continues to live with the disease to this day.
What is Spinal Sclerosis?
A sclerosis is a tear or a plaque. The disease, spinal sclerosis, is a progressive degenerative disease in which multiple lesions afflict the spine and nervous system slowly degrading the functioning of physical activity.
Spinal sclerosis is an immune disorder as well. That means that the mechanism that degrades the sufferer’s nerves is the sufferer’s own immune system. Specifically, what happens is that the immune system attacks and destroys the myelin (a protective barrier on the nerve’s axon) leaving the nerves open to direct contact with the body and thus hampering the communication between the brain and body.
Symptoms
The disease might first appear as a slight tremor (as it did for actor Michael J. Fox). Overtime, however, the sufferer might experience attacks during which severe tremors or outright immobility might occur. Similarly, the sufferer might experience extreme changes to their abilities to gather information from their senses properly. The sufferer might also experience dizziness and other neurological problems, as well.
Often symptoms of this disease include problems seeing, long term pain and constant tiredness.
Although most sufferers from spinal sclerosis die only about five years earlier than the general populace, most do die from complications related to their condition.
Women tend to suffer from MS at higher rates than men do, though men often experience more extreme symptoms.
Causes
Science has not yet discovered the exact cause of spinal sclerosis. Most researchers believe that a complicated set of factors may play a role in the development of spinal sclerosis. Among the factors thought to play a role are genetics and environment. Higher rates of familial spinal sclerosis suggest that individuals may have a genetic predisposition to the disease.
Part of the mystery about this disease has to do with its prevalence in populations who live at a distance from the Equator. The fact that those who live in colder climates are at a greater risk for the development of spinal sclerosis has lead to several theories about the causes of the disease. Some researchers theorize that the disease may involve a lack of Vitamin D (the body converts Vitamin D when exposed to sunlight). Other researchers believe it may have to do with exposure to industrial chemicals that are more common in the Northern Hemisphere.
Studies have also shown that other factors may effect the development of MS. For example, studies show that high levels of stress may lead to more frequent and more severe attacks. Similarly, strains on the immune system may also increase the possibility of an attack. Flu and poor sleep and exercise habits are thought to contribute the severity of the attacks. Diet may also play a role in the disease’s prevalence.
Treatment
While there are no known cures to spinal sclerosis, the medical community has developed methods of managing the disease and ways of reducing its effects and slowing its progress. These treatments are partially chemical and partially behavioral. Because the medications all have unpleasant side effects, the sufferer usually tries behavioral changes at first before moving on to chemical treatments. In combination, these treatments have helped many sufferers from the disease lead fuller, happier lives.