Site icon Media Review it

MS symptoms in women: Common, early, and rare

MS symptoms in women: Common, early, and rare

MS symptoms in women: Common, early, and rare

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease that disrupts the flow of information in the central nervous system. It causes many symptoms and can affect women differently than men.

Scientists do not know what causes multiple sclerosis. When the disease occurs, the immune system destroys myelin, a type of tissue that insulates nerve fibers.

Without enough myelin, it is difficult for nerves to send and receive signals properly.

MS occasionally affects nerves in the brain, spinal cord, and eyes. It can cause a variety of unexpected physical, mental, and emotional symptoms that vary from person to person.

This article looks at some of the most common symptoms of multiple sclerosis, explains why women’s symptoms may differ slightly from men’s, and discusses diagnosis and treatment.

Symptoms of multiple sclerosis in women

Symptoms of multiple sclerosis in women are similar to those in men, but may include additional problems due to hormonal changes. Multiple sclerosis can affect a woman’s sexual health and bladder function in many ways.

Advertisement

Symptoms of multiple sclerosis in women include:

  1. Vision problems

For many people, vision problems are the first noticeable symptom of MS.

There are three common vision problems.

Other conditions that can affect the eyes of people with multiple sclerosis include:

People with multiple sclerosis have inflammation of the optic nerve or nerve damage in the pathways that control vision and eye movements

Vision problems caused by multiple sclerosis can be scary, but most go away without treatment or respond well to treatment.

  1. Paralysis

Numbness of the face, trunk, arms or legs is another common symptom of multiple sclerosis. This is often one of the first symptoms of the disease.

Numbness can range from mild and barely noticeable to severe enough to interfere with daily activities such as lifting or walking.

Most numbness caused by multiple sclerosis resolves without medication and does not cause permanent disability.

Advertisement

About 80 percent of people with multiple sclerosis experience numbness or tingling in parts of the body.

  1. Fatigue

About 80% of people with multiple sclerosis experience fatigue or unexplained fatigue.

Sometimes the cause of fatigue is related to other symptoms of multiple sclerosis. For example, people with bladder dysfunction may not get enough sleep because they have to get up all night to go to the bathroom.

People with multiple sclerosis who have muscle spasms at night may also have trouble sleeping and feel tired during the day. Multiple sclerosis can also increase the risk of depression, which can lead to fatigue.

Another type of fatigue that seems to be specific to multiple sclerosis is called fatigue. You may feel tired if:

  1. Bladder problems

Bladder problems affect at least 80 percent of people with MS. These problems occur when the nerve scar interferes with the transmission of nerve signals needed for urine and bladder sphincter function.

MS makes it difficult to hold the bladder, reduces its storage capacity, and can cause symptoms such as:

Advertisement
  1. Intestinal problems

Many people with multiple sclerosis experience bowel problems such as:

Bowel problems can make other symptoms of multiple sclerosis worse. Specifically bladder problems, muscle stiffness and involuntary muscle contractions.

Some researchers believe that patients with multiple sclerosis have trouble controlling their bowels because the disease is caused by nerve damage. People with multiple sclerosis may have trouble controlling their bowels if they are constipated.

About half of people with multiple sclerosis may have bowel problems at some point.

  1. To be in pain

Some studies suggest that 55% of MS patients have clinically significant pain and 48% have chronic pain.

According to a 2020 study, women with multiple sclerosis may be more likely than men to experience pain as a symptom of the disease. The study’s authors suggested a link between this and a higher risk of depression in women with multiple sclerosis than in men.

Pain in acute multiple sclerosis is caused by problems with the nerves that support sensory transmission in the central nervous system.

Symptoms of acute pain associated with MS include:

Advertisement

Symptoms that people with multiple sclerosis may report include:

Many people with multiple sclerosis experience chronic pain as a side effect of their symptoms. This can, for example, lead to:

  1. Cognitive change

More than 50% of MS patients experience cognitive changes.

The cognitive symptoms of MS are usually mild to moderate and affect only certain aspects of cognition.

Rarely, people with multiple sclerosis have cognitive impairment.

  1. Indifference

Clinical depression is a symptom of MS. Depression is more common in people with MS than other chronic diseases. Up to half of all people with multiple sclerosis may experience depression at some point.

Most people experience periods of depression and sadness, but clinical depression is characterized by symptoms of depression that last for at least two weeks.

Symptoms of clinical depression include:

Clinical depression can also worsen other symptoms of MS, such as:

The sudden signs

The early symptoms of MS are as follows:

Although the above symptoms are common, MS affects everyone differently. Less common symptoms of MS include:

Perspectives

MS is an autoimmune disease that randomly affects parts of the central nervous system and causes unpredictable physical, cognitive and emotional symptoms.

MS is more common in women than men, but people of different genders often experience similar symptoms. But women can make a difference

Advertisement
Exit mobile version