Take steps to unlock many mysteries surrounding MS

Few debilitating medical conditions find themselves shrouded in as much mystery as multiple sclerosis.

What medical professionals do know, after decades of research, is that MS damages the insulating covers of nerve cells, causing disruption to the central nervous system and unleashing a range of physical, mental and psychological problems. MS owes its name to the multiple scars or sclerae that develop on the white matter of the brain and spinal cord.

Depending on the individual, those symptoms can include any of a number of serious conditions such as blurred vision, loss of balance, poor coordination, slurred speech, tremors, numbness, extreme fatigue, problems with memory and concentration, blindness and paralysis.

What medical professionals do not know, however, is what causes that damage to the nerve cells in the first place. Nor have they discovered any successful cures for MS. In addition, because the disease is not a mandated reportable condition in the U.S. or many other countries, we’re also left in the dark in efforts to accurately measure the scope and incidence of the disease.

Credible estimates, however, indicate the disease affects about 2.3 million people worldwide, including about 400,000 in the United States and tens of thousands in Ohio.

Fortunately for those living with MS and their families, a variety of individuals and groups have been working resolutely for decades to unlock the mysteries of the disease in hopes of finding better treatments and ultimately a cure.

GOOD WORKS OF MSSA

In the Mahoning Valley, the Multiple Sclerosis Services Agency has worked vigilantly to assist those living with all forms of the disease for decades. Its 27th Annual MSSA Super Walk, the group’s signature fundraising event of the year, will take place 9 a.m. Saturday at the Greenway Trail in Lisbon. (Call 330-533-6772 for more information on the walk.)

The walk provides a perfect opportunity for Valley residents to take valuable steps in the movement to better understand the many dimensions of MS and to assist those dealing with it on a daily basis in our region.

MSSA, which serves Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties, is not affiliated with the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. All funds that it raises stay in the Mahoning Valley and are invested in programs that positively impact countless lives.

Among those services are support groups in each county; free loans of walkers, wheelchairs, beds and other medical or household items; assistance in financing treatment; therapeutic swim programs; health fairs; public education programs and many others.

Coupled with ongoing strides in improving therapies and treatments for MS patients, the good works performed by the MSSA make life more enjoyable and meaningful for its clientele.

But even as strides are being made, much more research and work lies ahead in the struggle to shed brighter light on the root causes of and potential cures for multiple sclerosis.

Toward reaching that long-awaited end, we encourage maximum participation in Saturday’s Super Walk in Lisbon.