Understanding MND and Do Sportspeople At Higher Risk to Be Diagnosed?

MND impacts nerves located in the cerebrum and spine, which tell your muscle tissue how to function.

This leads them to lose strength and stiffen gradually and typically impacts your walking, speak, consume food and respire.

This is a relatively rare condition that is most frequent in individuals above age fifty, but grown-ups of all ages can be impacted.

A person's lifetime risk of developing MND is one in 300.

Approximately five thousand people in the UK will have the condition at any given moment.

Scientists are not sure what causes MND, but it is probable to be a mix of the genetic material - or inherited characteristics - you get from your parents when you are delivered, and additional lifestyle factors.

For up to 10% of individuals with MND, specific genes play a much larger role.

There is usually a family history of the disease in these cases.

What are the First Signs of the Condition?

MND affects everyone differently.

Not all individuals has the same symptoms, or experiences them in the identical sequence.

The condition can advance at varying rates too.

Some of the most common signs are:

• muscle weakness and cramps
• stiff joints
• problems with your speech
• complications involving swallowing, eating and taking fluids
• weakened coughing

Does There Exist a Cure?

No definitive treatment, but there is hope coming from therapies targeted at various types of MND.

MND is not one disease - it is actually several that result in the death of motor neurones.

An innovative medication known as tofersen works in only one in 50 individuals, however it has been demonstrated to decelerate - and in some cases even reverse - a portion of the manifestations of MND.

It has been referred to as "absolutely groundbreaking" and a "significant point of hope" for the whole disease.

Although the medication has recently been approved in the European Union, it is not yet available in the UK.

Just one pharmaceutical presently approved for the management of MND in the UK and endorsed by the NHS.

Riluzole may slow down the progression of the condition and increase survival by several months, but it does not reverse damage.

What is Life Expectancy for MND?

Some people can survive for decades with MND, such as renowned scientist Stephen Hawking, who was diagnosed at the age of 22 and lived to 76.

But for the majority, the disease progresses quickly and survival time is only several years.

Based on the charity MND Association, the condition claims the lives of a third of individuals within a twelve months and over 50% within 24 months of diagnosis.

As the nerve cells stop working, ingestion and respiration become increasingly difficult and many people need feeding tubes or respiratory aids to help them stay alive.

Are Athletes More Likely to Receive a Diagnosis?

The precise reason has not been identified, but elite athletes appear disproportionately affected by MND.

A pair of research projects from 2005 and 2009 showed that soccer players have an increased risk of contracting MND.

Research from 2022 by the Glasgow University including 400 ex- Scotland rugby union players determined they had an higher likelihood of acquiring the disease.

Scientists also found that rugby players who have suffered multiple concussions have physiological variations that could render them more susceptible to contracting MND.

The MND Association recognizes there is a "correlation" between contact sports and MND.

It added that while the athletes studied were had a greater chance to develop MND, it did not prove the athletic activities directly led to the disease.

The charity also stresses that "documented MND cases in this research is remains quite small, and so concluding there is a certain elevated chance could be misunderstood if this is merely a cluster due to statistical coincidence".

Several high-profile sports figures have been diagnosed with the disease in recent years.

This encompasses former rugby players, soccer players, and cricket athletes.

Across the Atlantic, baseball player Lou Gehrig died from the disease aged 39.