Multiple sclerose (MS) is a debilitating disease of the central nervous system in which the immune system attacks the myelin sheath — a layer of tissue and protein that protects nerve fibers in the brain and spinal cord — causing communication problems between the brain and the body. Ultimately, this can cause nerve damage, resulting in a whole host of phantom pains and sensations.
Historically, MS has been a condition shrouded in mystery and often rejected or received in disbelief, but experts are now learning more about the disease. In fact, Harvard researchers have confirmed one cause for MS. If you’ve done this one thing, they say your chance of developing the inflammatory condition is 32 times greater than if you didn’t. Read on to find out what experts are saying right now, perhaps the leading causes of MS, and how to protect yourself from developing the condition.
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Medical experts have long sought to understand the mechanics behind multiple sclerosis, which currently affects an estimated 2.8 million people worldwide. This week, researchers from the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health published new findings in the journal Science stating that most MS cases are related to: previous infection of the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV).
“The hypothesis that EBV causes MS It has been studied by our group and others for several years, but this is the first study to provide convincing evidence of causality.” Alberto Ascherio, MD, DrPH, professor of epidemiology and nutrition at Harvard Chan School and senior author of the study, according to a press release. “This is a big step because it suggests that most MS cases could be prevented by stopping EBV infection, and that targeting EBV could lead to the discovery of a cure for MS.”
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Establishing a causal relationship between the Epstein-Barr virus and MS has been particularly difficult, especially given that EBV is extremely common, while MS remains relatively rare. To complicate matters further, beginning of MS symptoms usually begin about 10 years after an EBV infection, obscuring a direct connection.
To investigate the relationship between the two diseases, the Harvard team studied more than 10 million young adults in the United States military, including 955 who diagnosed with MS while on active duty. After analyzing serum samples periodically taken by the military, the team determined each subject’s EBV status at the time of their first sample and monitored the relationship between EBV and MS in those who developed symptoms while serving.
Their findings were grim. “The risk of MS increased 32-fold after infection with EBV, but was unchanged after infection with other viruses,” the team said. “Serum levels of the neurofilament light chain, a biomarker of nerve degeneration typical of MS, only increased after EBV infection. The findings cannot be explained by any known risk factor for MS and suggest that EBV is the leading cause of MS,” they add.
Volgens de Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Epstein-Barr-virus is a member of the herpes virus family and is also known as human herpes virus 4. It is considered extremely common, the health authority stresses: Most people will experience an EBV infection at some point in their lives, usually during childhood when you’ less likely to develop symptoms. The health authority estimates that between 90 and 95 percent of adults have a body that indicates a current or past EBV infection.
Symptoms of EBV—if they occur at all—usually include fatigue, fever, inflamed throat, swollen lymph nodes in the neck, enlarged spleen, swollen liver, or skin rash. After an EBV infection, the virus becomes inactive in your body, but remains latent in the B memory cells. in those with weakened immune system, the virus can be reactivated later, the CDC explains.
Epstein-Barr infects others through bodily fluids, usually through saliva. “EBV can be spread by using objects, such as a toothbrush or drinking glass, that an infected person has recently used. The virus is likely to survive on an object as long as the object remains moist,” the CDC said.
For this reason, the health authority suggests that you may be able to protect yourself “by not kissing or sharing drinks, food, or personal items, such as toothbrushes, with people who have an EBV infection.” EBV is also known as the most common cause of infectious mononucleosis (popularly known as “mono”), so you should take these precautions if you or someone you know has a known case of the virus.
However, the researchers behind the Harvard study were less optimistic about your chances of deliberately avoiding EBV, focusing instead on the greater possibilities their findings could create. “Currently, there is no way to effectively prevent or treat EBV infection, but an EBV vaccine or targeting the virus with EBV-specific antiviral drugs could ultimately prevent or cure MS,” Ascherio said. Thanks to their breakthrough debilitating multiple sclerosis cases may one day be a thing of the past.
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