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Common Symptoms of MS are:
- Inflammation of the optic nerve
- Double vision
- Loss of balance
- Weakness in legs or arms
- Fatigue
- Loss of sensation
- Stiffness in legs
- Bladder problems
Diagnosing MS
In order to establish if a person is suffering from MS, they must have had two attacks afflicting different parts of the central nervous system. The diagnosis can also be established after an MRI that shows a typical picture of MS or after a sample of spinal fluid that also shows typical inflammatory MS cells.
How MS Affects the Bladder
About 80% of MS patients experience bladder problems. They either suffer urine leakage or problems emptying their bladder, sometimes both. However, only about 10% experience bladder problems as the first sign of MS.
The damage to the nervous system from MS affects the transfer and coordination of neural impulses between the brain, the spinal cord and the bladder.
An overactive bladder is a common consequence, in other words frequent urgings and the need to empty your bladder, even though it isn’t full. A person suffering from MS can’t control these signals or relieve the urgings.
For 70-80 per cent of MS sufferers, even the emptying of the bladder is affected. The muscles in the pelvis and the sphincter muscle around the urethra are contracted during emptying. This results in the urethra closing too early and the bladder not being properly emptied. This is called detrusor external sphincter dyssynergia. The residual urine can lead to the amount of time between bladder emptying being shorter than if the bladder had been completely emptied.
The progress of MS can often swing like a pendulum, during certain periods, urinating will be more problematic than it is during other periods. It is important that you treat these bladder emptying problems, residual urine can lead to UTIs which in turn can cause new attacks or the return of an attack that had previously receded.
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