Multiple Sclerosis

Message Board: Ask 's Multiple Sclerosis Expert Our expert answers questions about multiple sclerosis symptoms, diagnosis and treatments. Click here to read and participate. Ask 's Multiple Sclerosis Expert Messag...

Resources (Multiple Sclerosis)

A listing of agencies and organizations with information for caregivers of those with multiple sclerosis. National Organizations American Health Care Association (AHCA) 1201 L St., NW Washington, DC 20005...

In some ways, each person with multiple sclerosis lives with a different illness. Although nerve damage is always involved, the pattern is unique for each individual who has MS. Although individual experiences with MS vary widely, doctors and re...

Personal Stories (Multiple Sclerosis)

Health activist Nancy Davis takes on multiple sclerosis. By Denise Mann Feature Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD Fourteen years ago, a highly regarded doctor told Nancy Davis that she was lucky sh...

Multiple Sclerosis & Nursing Home Care (Multiple Sclerosis)

What Is Long-Term Care? Long-term care refers to a comprehensive range of medical, personal, and social services coordinated to meet the physical, social, and emotional needs of people who are chronically ill or disabled. A nursing home facility...

Multiple Sclerosis & Assisted Living (Multiple Sclerosis)

Assisted living is a type of housing for people who need various levels of medical and personal care. Living spaces can be individual rooms, apartments, or shared quarters. The facilities generally provide a home-like setting and are physically desig...

Multiple Sclerosis: Assistive Devices (Multiple Sclerosis)

There are a variety of assistive devices that can help you manage the symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS). An assistive device is a tool or product that makes a certain function easier to perform. An occupational or physical therapist can prescribe t...

Multiple Sclerosis: Adapting Your Home (Multiple Sclerosis)

Because daily activities -- including leisure activities -- can cause fatigue more quickly in people with multiple sclerosis, it's important to modify your activity levels. And, because MS can make moving around difficult, making certain changes to y...

Multiple Sclerosis & Dating (Multiple Sclerosis)

Adults with multiple sclerosis find that self-acceptance and open communication can unlock the door to dating and intimacy. By Elizabeth Heubeck Feature Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD Navigating...

Multiple Sclerosis & Sex (Multiple Sclerosis)

It is not surprising that many people with multiple sclerosis report a decline in sexual desire. What with the fatigue, muscle spasms, and bladder control problems, who would want to think about sex? But, there are steps that can be taken to improve ...

Work & Multiple Sclerosis (Multiple Sclerosis)

Experts describe strategies that help multiple sclerosis patients cope with symptoms of the disease. By Elizabeth Heubeck Feature Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD How to handle workplace issues wh...

Careers, Vocational Rehabilitation, & Multiple Sclerosis (Multiple Sclerosis)

A satisfying work life is as important to someone with multiple sclerosis as to anyone. But if you have MS, finding work that matches your skills, interests, and abilities can be especially challenging. State government agencies and health care ...

Multiple Sclerosis: A Family Guide (Multiple Sclerosis)

A chronic and unpredictable disease, such as multiple sclerosis, has significant impact not only on you but also on your loved ones. You are not the only one who suffers. Your partner and children must also cope with the disease and the changes it ma...

Stress & Multiple Sclerosis (Multiple Sclerosis)

The prolonged stress of living with a chronic illness, like multiple sclerosis, can lead to frustration, anger, hopelessness, and depression. People with MS are especially at risk of becoming depressed. And, for good reason since people with MS face ...

Sleep Problems & Multiple Sclerosis (Multiple Sclerosis)

Sleep problems, or disorders, are conditions that prevent a person from getting restful sleep and as a result, cause daytime sleepiness. There are about 80 different types of sleep disorders and about 70 million Americans suffer from them. The inabil...

Exercise & Multiple Sclerosis (Multiple Sclerosis)

Exercise can help ease the symptoms of multiple sclerosis, but it's important to take certain precautions if you want your exercise program to be successful. The most important thing to remember is to not overdo it. You may have heard the mottos...

Eating Right & Multiple Sclerosis (Multiple Sclerosis)

Healthy eating is important for everyone, but it is particularly important if you have a chronic illness, such as multiple sclerosis. Good nutrition, especially adequate calories and protein, helps maintain your body's store of protein, provide energ...

Treating Multiple Sclerosis Pain (Multiple Sclerosis)

Many options are available to treat pain in patients with multiple sclerosis. By Gina Shaw Feature Reviewed by Brunilda Nazario, MD Anticonvulsant Drugs Offer Relief For the most part, however,...

Living and Coping (Multiple Sclerosis)

When you get an illness like bronchitis or the flu, you know you'll be feeling better and functioning normally within a week or so. A chronic illness, like multiple sclerosis, is different. It may never go away and can disrupt your lifestyle in many ...

Managing Speech and Swallowing Problems (Multiple Sclerosis)

People with multiple sclerosis, or MS, often have swallowing difficulties. In many cases, they are associated with speech problems as well. What Causes the Speech and Swallowing Problems of Multiple Sclerosis? Like other symptoms of multipl...

Managing Bowel Problems (Multiple Sclerosis)

Because multiple sclerosis interrupts or slows the transmission of signals to and from the brain, the electrical impulses to the muscles that are involved in emptying your bowel can become disrupted. A...

Therapy & Multiple Sclerosis (Multiple Sclerosis)

Occupational therapy can help people with multiple sclerosis stay active in daily life. By improving skills, teaching alternative ways to complete tasks, or introducing handy equipment, an occupational therapist can help people with MS perform everyd...

Heat and Multiple Sclerosis (Multiple Sclerosis)

Heat or high humidity can make many people with multiple sclerosis (MS) experience a temporary worsening of their symptoms. Doctors believe that this occurs because heat causes nerves (whose myelin covering has been destroyed from MS) to conduct elec...

Physical Therapy & Multiple Sclerosis (Multiple Sclerosis)

The symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS) can affect your ability to move around. You may be experiencing tightness, pain, and weakness, especially in the muscles and joints. Physical therapy may help. Physical therapy cannot cure the primary symp...

Care (Multiple Sclerosis)

If you've just been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS), you may need to work with your doctor to put together a comprehensive team of multiple sclerosis support. Or, maybe you already are surrounded by an expert array of multiple sclerosis doctor...

Ampyra for MS (Multiple Sclerosis)

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic and often disabling disease of the central nervous system, which consists of the brain, spinal cord, and optic nerves. The disease damages myelin, a fatty substance that normally surrounds and protects the nerves....

Alternative Treatments for Multiple Sclerosis (Multiple Sclerosis)

The term alternative therapy, in general, is used to describe any medical treatment or intervention that has not been scientifically documented or identified as safe or effective for a specific condition. Alternative therapy encompasses a variet...

Managing Bladder Control Problems (Multiple Sclerosis)

Bladder control problems occur in at least 80% of people with multiple sclerosis. Because MS interrupts or slows the transmission of signals to and from the brain, the electrical impulses to the muscles that are involved in emptying the bladder can b...

Controlling Muscle Spasms (Multiple Sclerosis)

Many people with multiple sclerosis experience spasticity, or muscle stiffness and spasms. It usually affects the muscles of the legs and arms, and may interfere with the ability to move those muscles freely. Spasticity can occur either as a sus...

Deep Brain Stimulation: Multiple Sclerosis Tremors (Multiple Sclerosis)

Deep brain stimulation (or DBS) is a variation of an old surgery that may be used to treat tremors in people with conditions such as multiple sclerosis (also called MS), Parkinson's disease, and essential tremor. In the 1960s, surgery was used to des...