MS Facts
- Approximately 400,000 Americans acknowledge having MS. Every
week about 200 people are diagnosed. Worldwide, MS may affect
an estimated 2.5 million individuals.
- MS symptoms result when inflammation and breakdown affect myelin,
the protective insulation surrounding nerve fibers of the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord).
- Symptoms of MS may include: extreme fatigue, impaired vision, loss
of balance and muscle coordination, numbness, slurred speech, tremors, stiffness, bladder and bowel problems, difficulty walking,
short-term memory loss, difficulty concentrating, mood swings and,
in severe cases, partial or complete paralysis.
- According to a 1998 Duke University study, the average annual cost
of MS exceeds $34,000 per person, with lifetime costs of more
than $2.2 million.
- Most people with MS are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50.
- Twice as many women as men have MS.
- MS is not fatal, it is not contagious and it is not directly inherited.
- There is currently no cure for MS, although research is very promising.
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