Multiple sclerosis is commonly known by the acronym, MS. It affects the nerves in the brain and spinal cord, making it difficult for the person affected to control their muscles properly. They also have trouble with their eyesight and their balance and sometimes lose feeling in their limbs. The disease can cause paralysis if it is very severe.
Nerve damage in multiple sclerosis happens when the body forms an auto-immune response to the myelin sheaths that surround major nerves in the body. Normally, the body only responds to infectious agents such as bacteria and viruses, producing an immune response to get rid of them. However, sometimes one of the molecules on a bacteria or a virus 'looks' very similar to one of the molecules on a myelin sheath. The body recognizes one of its own structures as foreign and starts to attack it.
As the myelin sheath is damaged by the immune response, the affected nerves cannot pass signals along as well as they used to and all sorts of problems start.
Nerve damage in multiple sclerosis happens when the body forms an auto-immune response to the myelin sheaths that surround major nerves in the body. Normally, the body only responds to infectious agents such as bacteria and viruses, producing an immune response to get rid of them. However, sometimes one of the molecules on a bacteria or a virus 'looks' very similar to one of the molecules on a myelin sheath. The body recognizes one of its own structures as foreign and starts to attack it.
As the myelin sheath is damaged by the immune response, the affected nerves cannot pass signals along as well as they used to and all sorts of problems start.