Multiple sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic multifactorial inflammatory disease of the central nervous system. It occurs more often in young adults and affects more usually women. Some of its most common symptoms include blurred vision, numbness, weakness of a limb, etc. Multiple sclerosis belongs to the demyelinating diseases of the central nervous system. A common feature of demyelinating diseases is the involvement of myelin (the protective sheath of nerval axons), leading to its partial destruction. These areas become visible on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain and/or spinal cord as areas of abnormal white matter signal with specific characteristics called demyelinating lesions. In the majority of cases the disease progresses with remissions and exacerbations (RRMS), but there are also cases where the disease does not show distinct episodes and worsens progressively (progressive forms of MS).