Multiple sclerosis (Ms) is neurological disease. Spine lesions are very easily to be found in people with multiple sclerosis. So yes Spinal cord lesions are very common symptoms of progressive forms of multiple sclerosis ms which can cause increased risk of disability.
Spinal cord lesions
To be honest spinal cord lesions aren’t that much studied what causes this that people with ms do not know what a huge role is being played by them in the process of the disease.
It isn’t known in 100% but probably spinal cord lesions are forming the same way as those in the brain. Those spinal cord lesions are more progressive ms form than other forms of the ms.
Brain and spinal cord lesions
There are studies which shows conection between brain and spinal cord lesions. Presence of lesions that we talk about can increase risk of future brain and spinal cord lesions which can lead to worse the disability progression.
Signs of spinal cord lesion
There are many signs of spinal cord lesions, for example:
- Difficulty with fine motor skills,
- Difficulty breathing,
- Paralysis,
- Pain,
- Muscle spasms,
- Problem with balance.
Spinal cord lesions can cause many symptoms and it all depends on this where it is located, what type it is and also the causes of it.
Causes
Lesion is some kind of change which is out of normal and also is caused by disease or some kind of injury that affects any tissue or organ. Spinal lesions can be caused by:
- Autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis – ms,
- Inflammatory diseases like for emple transverse myelitis,
- Vascular disorders like for example spinal cord infarctio,
- Benign tumors,
- Cancer’s.
How specialists detects spine lesions?
There are few ways to detect spine lesion but there is the most common way to do it and it is through magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
The specialist will order scans of body parts like brain, cervical spinal cord, and thoracic spinal cord to get as much evidence as only will be possible for the right diagnosis.
Prevention
There is no any specific cure for ms but there are therapies like disease-modifying therapies. By those meds you can slow the progressive ms of the disease activity it happens because numbers and also severity of relapses are reduced. This treatment works in few ways:
- It regulates immune cell function,
- It reduces inflammation and demyelination,
- It reduces amounts of some immune cells which are involved in ms attacks.
Treatment
Treatment of those spinal cord lesions can be done by specific causes. For example:
- Cancer can be treated by the surgery (removal), radiation, chemotherapy and also targeted therapies.
- Autoimmune diseases can be treated by immunosuppressants and disease-modifying therapies.
- Inflammatory diseases can be treated with anti inflammatory meds, steroids or immunosuppressants.
After treatment is done there is also physical therapy which can be helpful in restoring functions and also can do wonderful job in recovery.
Symptoms of ms lesions on spine
There is a process whcich is called demyelination. This process is happening when lesions in areas of the central nervous system forms but also you shuldn’t forget of parts of the brain and spinal cord are formig. It can give ms symptoms like:
- numbness,
- weakness,
- trouble walking,
- dizziness,
- bladder problems,
- depression,
- sexual dysfunction.
And many others of course. Those are only few of the symptoms person with multiple sclerosis can be having problems with.
Effects of spinal lesions
Lesions that are located on spain as well as on the brain cause damage to the myelin which is responsible of protection of nerve cells. Those actions can cause this that the nerves’ impulses will travel more slowly what is causing symptoms to get either worsen steadily in which case they just are progressive but also symptoms can just come and go what is calling those sumptoms relapsing-remitting ms. Some reserchers has discovered that people with early stage of multiple sclerosis has more spinal cord lesions than brain lesions. People with more of spinal cord lesions are experiencing more of physical disability.
Results of those studies says that when spinal cord is involvement it predicts worse neurological outcomes.
How multiple sclerosis lesions form?
As it was said before spinal cord lesions in MS are probably forming by the same mechanisms like those in the brain.
Inflammation of the brain and spinal cord is made because of escaping white blood cells from the bloodstream. When they escape they go through so called blood brain barrier and then they get to the brain tissue.
Spine lesions and it’s causes
Spine lesions of multiple sclerosis most of the time are being found in the cervical region but sometimes it can be found in the thoracic region. Causes of spine lesions can be:
- Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder,
- Cancer,
- Congenital defects,
- Infections.
There are many more of the causes of spine lesions here are just some of them.
Important informations
- Spinal cord abnormalities are very much normal to multiple sclerosis patients. This also includes many pathological processes.
- Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune disorder that is very much affectig the central nervous system what causes your immune system to attack fat layer which is doing it’s protective role. This fat layer is called myelin sheath.
- Before doctor will diagnose ms he will have to check each diagnosis which might be possible and rule them out if they won’t be right.
- Spinal cord involvement can predict that worse neurological outcomes can occur.
- Atrophy is a change is loss of brain or spinal cord volume.
- Person that is dealing with ms has got lesions in the brain and spinal cord but also they can show up in optic nerve.
- Progressive MS patients are affected by spinal cord lesions and it still isn’t know if there is any kind of therapy that can help them.
- When myelin sheath is damaged there is scar tissue left behind which forms in lesions that are located on the brain and spinal cord.
- It is confirmed that lesions most of the time are located in the posterior columns in each ms type.
Therapies for Ms
In 2017 medicine for Ms was approved. This med it to treat adults whom forms of multiple sclerosis and also primary progressive multiple sclerosis are coming back. But there is no specific 100% working therapy that has shown that works compeletely.
Conclusion
As you could notice ms is condition that can be very hard to deal with and also doctor’s still doesn’t know much about them. For example they do not know why some patients have more lesions in the brain or skinal cord. It was also need that disability progression seems to be appearing because of disease course and also the age plays it’s role.
Lily32
I have a family member that is dealing with MS. Thanks to this article I understood way more than I already knew. Thank you so much for such a good article.