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Motor neurone disease impacts nerve cells found in the cerebrum and spine, which tell your muscle tissue how to function.

This causes them to lose strength and stiffen gradually and usually affects how you walk, speak, eat and respire.

It is a relatively rare condition that is most frequent in people above age fifty, but adults of any age can be affected.

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

Approximately 5,000 people in the UK are living with the condition at any given moment.

Scientists are uncertain what causes MND, but it is probable to be a combination of the genetic material - or inherited characteristics - you inherit from your mother and father when you are born, and additional lifestyle factors.

In as many as 10% of people with MND, specific genes play a much larger role.

There is usually a hereditary background of the disease in these cases.

Identifying the Early Symptoms of the Condition?

MND affects everyone differently.

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

The disease can progress at varying rates too.

Among the most common signs are:

• loss of muscle strength and muscle spasms
• rigid articulations
• problems with your speech
• complications involving ingesting, eating and taking fluids
• reduced cough reflex

Is There a Cure?

There is no cure, but there is optimism coming from therapies focused on various types of MND.

MND is not a single illness - it is actually several that culminate in the death of nerve cells.

An innovative medication called tofersen works in only one in 50 patients, however it has been shown to decelerate - and in some cases even undo - a portion of the symptoms of MND.

It has been described as "truly remarkable" and a "real moment of optimism" for the entire condition.

Although the drug has recently received approval in the EU, it is not currently accessible in the UK.

There is only one pharmaceutical currently licensed for the management of MND in the UK and endorsed by the NHS.

Riluzole may slow down the progression of the disease and prolong life by a few months, but it cannot repair harm.

Determining Life Expectancy for MND?

Some people can live for many years with MND, such as theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking, who was diagnosed at the age of 22 and lived to 76.

But for the majority, the disease progresses quickly and life expectancy is just a few years.

According to the charity MND Association, the condition claims the lives of a third of people within a year and more than half within 24 months of diagnosis.

As the neurons stop working, ingestion and breathing become more challenging and many people need feeding tubes or breathing apparatus to help them stay alive.

Are Athletes At Greater Risk to Be Diagnosed?

The exact cause has not been identified, but elite athletes seem disproportionately affected by MND.

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

Research from 2022 by the Glasgow University involving 400 former Scotland rugby athletes determined they had an increased risk of acquiring the disease.

Scientists additionally discovered that rugby athletes who have suffered repeated head injuries have physiological variations that may make them more prone to developing MND.

The MND Association acknowledges there is a "link" between contact sports and MND.

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

The organization also stresses that "documented MND instances in these studies is still relatively low, and so determining there is a certain elevated chance could be misunderstood if this is simply a cluster due to statistical coincidence".

Multiple prominent athletes have been identified with the disease in recent years.

These include former rugby union players, footballers, and cricket athletes.

Across the Atlantic, MLB athlete Lou Gehrig died from the disease at the age of 39.