Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a neurological disease characterized by multiple areas of damage and scarring (sclerosis) to the nerve fibers of the brain and spinal cord. Although research has brought us closer to understanding the disease process, its cause is not yet fully known, nor is there a cure.

What we do know is that MS is not a contagious disease, nor is it considered genetic, although some recent studies suggest a familial predisposition. MS affects an estimated 350,000 to 500,000 Americans, with women nearly twice as likely to contract the disease as men.

On average, the age of onset is between 20 to 40 years old, and geographically, the disease occurs more frequently in northern climes. Scientific evidence strongly suggests that MS is an autoimmune disorder in which the body’s immune system ravages its own cells. In MS, the nerve cells are under siege and the resultant fallout affects the entire body. Here’s how it works.

Our nervous system is a “live wire;” a profoundly intricate network that sends signals from our brain to other parts of our body. There is a protective coating of myelin around the nerve fiber, which acts as insulation in the same way that rubber protects the wiring on a lamp cord. In MS, the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks the myelin, eating away at the protective insulation.

Multiple Sclerosis – An infographic by GeriatricNursing.org