🔗 Share this article What is Motor Neurone Disease and Do Sportspeople More Likely to Be Diagnosed? MND affects nerve cells found in the cerebrum and spinal cord, which tell your muscle tissue what to do. This leads them to weaken and stiffen gradually and usually affects how you walk, talk, eat and respire. This is a quite uncommon condition that is most common in individuals above age fifty, but grown-ups of any age can be affected. An individual's chance in their life of developing MND is 1 out of 300. Approximately 5,000 people in the UK are living with the condition at any one time. Scientists are uncertain what causes MND, but it is probable to be a mix of the genes - or inherited characteristics - you get from your parents when you are delivered, and other environmental influences. For up to 10% of people with MND, particular genetic factors play a much larger role. Typically there is a family history of the disease in such instances. What are the Early Symptoms of the Disease? MND affects everyone differently. Not everyone has the identical signs, or encounters them in the same order. The condition can advance at different speeds too. Some of the most frequent indicators are: muscle weakness and cramps stiff joints problems with how you speak complications involving swallowing, consuming food and drinking reduced cough reflex Is There a Cure? No definitive treatment, but there is optimism stemming from therapies focused on different forms of MND. MND is not a single illness - it is really multiple that result in the demise of nerve cells. An innovative medication called tofersen is effective in only one in 50 individuals, however it has been demonstrated to slow - and in certain instances even reverse - a portion of the symptoms of MND. It has been referred to as "absolutely groundbreaking" and a "real moment of hope" for the whole disease. Even though the medication has recently received approval in the European Union, it is not currently accessible in the UK. Just one pharmaceutical currently licensed for the treatment of MND in the UK and approved by the NHS. Riluzole could decelerate the progression of the disease and increase survival by several months, but it cannot repair damage. What is Life Expectancy for MND? Certain individuals can survive for decades with MND, including renowned scientist Stephen Hawking, who was diagnosed at the twenty-two years old and survived until 76. But for the majority, the disease progresses quickly and survival time is only several years. Based on the non-profit MND Association, the disease claims the lives of a third of individuals within a year and more than half within 24 months of diagnosis. As the nerve cells stop working, ingestion and breathing become increasingly difficult and numerous individuals need nutritional support or respiratory aids to help them remain living. Do Sports Professionals More Likely to Receive a Diagnosis? The exact cause has not yet been found, but elite athletes appear overrepresented by MND. Two studies from 2005 and 2009 showed that soccer players have an elevated chance of developing MND. A 2022 study by the Glasgow University including 400 ex- Scotland rugby athletes determined they had an increased risk of developing the condition. Researchers additionally discovered that rugby players who have suffered repeated head injuries have biological differences that could render them more susceptible to developing MND. The MND Association acknowledges there is a "correlation" between collision sports and MND. It added that while the athletes researched were had a greater chance to develop MND, it did not prove the athletic activities directly caused the disease. The organization also emphasises that "reported MND instances in this research is remains quite small, and so determining there is a definite increased risk could be misunderstood if this is merely a cluster due to random chance". Multiple prominent athletes have been identified with the condition in the past few years. This encompasses former rugby union players, footballers, and cricketers. In the United States, baseball player Lou Gehrig died from the disease at the age of 39.