SYMPTOM MANAGEMENT IN MULTIPLE-SCLEROSIS

Presently, the course of multiple sclerosis (MS) can be altered little , if at all. Appropriate symptom management, however, can change the c ourse of lives and allow for more comfortable, healthier living despit e significant disease. Symptoms in MS are divided into three broad cat egories. Those that result from actual demyelination include decreased vision, weakness, spasticity, bladder problems, ataxia, numbness, and decreased cognition. Secondary symptoms spring from the primary; thes e symptoms include contractures, urinary tract infections, megacolon, decubiti, decreased bony calcification, and muscle atrophy. Tertiary s ymptoms are the unavoidable psychological, vocational, and social prob lems that occur with chronic disease. This article reviews standard th erapies, but the emphasis is On newer management solutions that may no t have reached their full potential, though they add to the developmen t of an appropriate life-management plan for persons; with MS. The pha rmacological approach to symptom management is emphasized, while under standing that rehabilitation and medications cannot be separated in th e real life alleviation of MS symptoms.