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MND impacts nerves found in the cerebrum and spine, which tell your muscles what to do.

This leads them to lose strength and become rigid gradually and typically impacts your walking, speak, eat and breathe.

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

An individual's chance in their life of developing MND is one in 300.

Approximately 5,000 people in the UK will have the condition at any one time.

Researchers are uncertain what causes MND, but it is likely to be a combination of the genetic material - or biological traits - you get from your parents when you are born, and additional environmental influences.

For up to one in 10 people with MND, particular genetic factors play a much larger role.

There is usually a hereditary background of the disease in such instances.

Identifying the Early Symptoms of the Condition?

MND affects everyone differently.

Not everyone has the identical signs, or experiences them in the same order.

The disease can advance at varying rates too.

Among the most common signs are:

• loss of muscle strength and cramps
• rigid articulations
• problems with your speech
• complications involving swallowing, consuming food and taking fluids
• reduced cough reflex

Does There Exist a Cure?

No cure, but there is optimism stemming from therapies focused on various types of MND.

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

A new drug known as tofersen works in just 2% of patients, however it has been shown to decelerate - and in some cases even reverse - some of the symptoms of MND.

It has been referred to as "truly remarkable" and a "significant point of optimism" for the entire condition.

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

Just one drug currently licensed for the management of MND in the UK and approved by the NHS.

Riluzole could decelerate the advancement of the disease and increase survival by a few months, but it does not reverse damage.

Determining Survival Rate for MND?

Certain individuals can live for many years with MND, such as theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking, who was identified at the twenty-two years old and survived until 76.

But for most, the illness advances rapidly and life expectancy is just a few years.

According to the non-profit MND Association, the condition claims the lives of a third of people within a twelve months and over 50% within 24 months of diagnosis.

As the neurons stop working, ingestion and breathing become increasingly difficult and numerous individuals need nutritional support or breathing apparatus to help them remain living.

Are Athletes At Greater Risk to Be Diagnosed?

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

Two studies from 2005 and 2009 showed that professional footballers have an increased risk of contracting MND.

A 2022 study by the Glasgow University involving four hundred former Scotland rugby union players concluded they had an increased risk of acquiring the disease.

Researchers additionally discovered that rugby players who have suffered repeated head injuries have biological differences that may make them more prone to contracting MND.

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

It noted that while the athletes studied were had a greater chance to acquire MND, it did not show the athletic activities directly caused the condition.

The organization also emphasises that "documented MND cases in these studies is still relatively low, and so determining there is a definite increased risk could be misunderstood if this is merely a grouping due to random chance".

Multiple prominent athletes have been diagnosed with the condition in recent years.

This encompasses ex- rugby union players, footballers, and cricketers.

Across the Atlantic, MLB athlete Lou Gehrig succumbed to the disease aged 39.