Multiple sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a non-contagious chronic disease of the brain and spinal cord characterized by a variety of neurologic symptoms caused by demyelination of neurons. Multiple sclerosis results from attack by a patient's own immune system on their central nervous system and is thus categorized as an autoimmune disease.

History

There are a few early reports about patients who could have suffered from MS. St. Lidwina of Schiedam (1380–1433), a Dutch nun, may have been the first reported MS patient. From the age of 16, she developed intermittent pain, weakness of the legs, and visual loss—symptoms typical of MS. She died at the age of 53.

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Schiedam - 1380 - 1433 - Dutch - Nun

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Augustus Frederick d'Este (1794–1848), an illegitimate grandson of King George III, another famous MS patient, left a detailed diary describing his 22 years living with the disease. It began at 28 with a sudden transient visual loss after the funeral of a friend. During the course of his disease he developed weakness of the legs, clumsiness of the hands, numbness, dizziness, bladder disturbances, and erectile dysfunction. In 1844, he was confined to a wheelchair. Despite his illness, he kept an optimistic view of life. The British diarist W. N. P. Barbellion also kept a detailed log of his diagnosis and struggle with MS, published in 1919 as The Journal of a Disappointed Man.

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1794 - 1848 - King George III - Erectile dysfunction - 1844 - Wheelchair - W. N. P. Barbellion - 1919

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Robert Hooper (1773–1835), a British pathologist and practicing physician, Robert Carswell (1793–1857), a British professor of pathology, and Jean Cruveilhier (1791–1873), a French professor of pathologic anatomy, were the first to describe the disease by medical illustrations as well as clinical details. Jean-Martin Charcot (1825–1893), a French neurologist, summarised previous reports and made important contributions by his own clinical and pathological observations. He recognised multiple sclerosis (sclerose en plaques) as a distinct, separate disease. Charcot's triad of multiple sclerosis consists of dysarthria, ataxia and tremor.

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1773 - 1835 - British - Physician - 1793 - 1857 - Pathology - 1791 - 1873 - French - Anatomy - Jean-Martin Charcot - 1825 - 1893 - Neurologist - Disease - Charcot's triad - Dysarthria - Ataxia - Tremor

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After 130 years of intensive research, we now know much about the underlying factors surrounding MS, and effective treatments have been developed. MS is, however, still an incurable disease, and the fundamental causes are unknown.

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