MS Facts

• More than 400,000 people in the United States have MS.
• An estimated 2,500,000 around the world have MS.
• About 45 percent of the people with MS are not severely affected by the disease.
• Diagnosis of MS is usually between 20 and 40 years of age.
• MS affects more women than men, with a ratio of 2:1.
• About 85 percent of those who are newly diagnosed have the relapsing-remitting form of MS.
• Without disease-modifying therapy, about 50 percent of those diagnosed with relapsing-remitting MS will become progressive at 10 years.
• Without disease-modifying therapy, about one-third of those diagnosed with relapsing-remitting MS will be using a wheelchair at 20 years.
• MS does not significantly affect life span.
• The course of the disease is unpredictable and no two people will experience the same set of symptoms.
• There are four types of MS: relapsing-remitting, secondary-progressive, primary progressive and progressive relapsing.
• Among young adults, MS is the most common disease of the central nervous system.
• Fatigue is one of the most common symptoms of MS.
• MS is not contagious.
• MS is a progressive disease for which there is not yet a cure.
• Increased understanding of MS has led to the development of many new treatments that target both the disease process and its many symptoms.
• Sclerosis is a Greek word meaning hardening of tissue or scars.
• MS is not inherited or genetically transmitted, although there does seem to be some genetic susceptibility to the disease.