What is MND and Do Sportspeople More Likely to Be Diagnosed?
MND impacts nerves found in the cerebrum and spinal cord, that instruct your muscles what to do.
This causes them to lose strength and become rigid over time and typically impacts your walking, speak, consume food and respire.
It is a quite uncommon condition that is most frequent in individuals over 50, but grown-ups of all ages can be impacted.
An individual's chance in their life of developing MND is one in 300.
About five thousand people in the UK are living with the disease at any one time.
Scientists are not sure the cause of MND, but it is likely to be a mix of the genes - or biological traits - you get from your parents when you are born, and additional environmental influences.
In as many as 10% of individuals with MND, particular genetic factors play a much larger role.
There is usually a family history of the illness in such instances.
Identifying the First Signs of the Disease?
MND impacts each person uniquely.
Not everyone has the identical signs, or encounters them in the identical sequence.
The disease can progress at different speeds too.
Among the most common indicators are:
- loss of muscle strength and cramps
- rigid articulations
- difficulties in how you speak
- complications involving swallowing, eating and drinking
- reduced cough reflex
Is There a Cure?
No definitive treatment, but there is optimism coming from treatments targeted at different forms of MND.
MND is not a single illness - it is actually multiple that culminate in the demise of motor neurones.
An innovative medication known as tofersen works in just 2% of patients, however it has been shown to slow - and in some cases even undo - a portion of the manifestations of MND.
It has been referred to as "truly remarkable" and a "significant point of hope" for the whole disease.
Even though the medication has recently received approval in the EU, it is not currently accessible in the UK.
Just one pharmaceutical currently licensed for the management of MND in the UK and approved by the NHS.
Riluzole may slow down the advancement of the condition and increase survival by several months, but it cannot repair harm.
What is Survival Rate for MND?
Certain individuals can live for many years with MND, such as renowned scientist Stephen Hawking, who was identified at the age of 22 and lived to 76.
But for most, the illness advances rapidly and life expectancy is just a few years.
Based on the non-profit MND Association, the condition kills a third of people within a twelve months and more than half within 24 months of diagnosis.
As the nerve cells stop working, swallowing and breathing become more challenging and numerous individuals need feeding tubes or respiratory aids to help them remain living.
Are Athletes More Likely to Receive a Diagnosis?
The precise reason has not yet been found, but top-level sportspeople appear overrepresented by MND.
Two studies from 2005 and 2009 showed that soccer players have an elevated chance of contracting MND.
A 2022 study by the University of Glasgow including four hundred former Scotland rugby union players concluded they had an higher likelihood of acquiring the disease.
Researchers also found that rugby players who have suffered repeated head injuries have physiological variations that could render them more susceptible to contracting MND.
The MND Association acknowledges there is a "correlation" between contact sports and MND.
It added that while the athletes researched were more likely to develop MND, it did not prove the sports directly caused the disease.
The charity also emphasises that "reported MND instances in this research is remains quite small, and so concluding there is a definite increased risk could be misunderstood if this is merely a grouping due to random chance".
Multiple high-profile sports figures have been identified with the condition in the past few years.
These include former rugby union players, soccer players, and cricket athletes.
Across the Atlantic, MLB athlete Lou Gehrig succumbed to the condition aged 39.
