Study Finds Concussion in Teens, But Not Children, May Increase Later Risks of Developing MS : National Multiple Sclerosis Society

Study Finds Concussion in Teens, But Not Children, May Increase Later Risks of Developing MS

September 8, 2017

A large-scale study in Sweden suggests that teens (11-20 yrs) who experience head trauma leading to concussion, especially more than once, are significantly more likely to develop multiple sclerosis in later life. This association was not found in children (under 10 yrs) who had experienced concussion. MS occurs in people whose genes and other factors make them susceptible. Concussion may be another risk factor, but this finding does not mean that all teens who experience concussion will develop MS, and many people who develop MS have not experienced concussion.

Read more about the study in Medicalxpress
Read the scientific abstract in Annals of Neurology
Read more about risk factors and MS

Multiple sclerosis is an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system that disrupts the flow of information within the brain, and between the brain and body. Symptoms range from numbness and tingling to blindness and paralysis. The progress, severity and specific symptoms of MS in any one person cannot yet be predicted, but advances in research and treatment are leading to better understanding and moving us closer to a world free of MS. Most people with MS are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, with at least two to three times more women than men being diagnosed with the disease. MS affects more than 2.3 million people worldwide.

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