🔗 Share this article What is MND and Are Athletes More Likely to Be Diagnosed? MND impacts nerve cells located in the brain and spine, which tell your muscle tissue how to function. This causes them to weaken and become rigid gradually and typically impacts how you walk, speak, consume food and breathe. It is a relatively rare condition that is most frequent in people over 50, but adults of all ages can be impacted. A person's chance in their life of contracting MND is one in 300. About five thousand adults in the UK are living with the condition at any given moment. Scientists are not sure what causes MND, but it is likely to be a mix of the genetic material - or inherited characteristics - you get from your parents when you are delivered, and additional lifestyle factors. In as many as one in 10 people with MND, specific genes are far more significant. Typically there is 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 encounters them in the identical sequence. The disease can progress at different speeds too. Among the most common indicators are: muscle weakness and cramps rigid articulations difficulties in how you speak issues with swallowing, consuming food and taking fluids weakened coughing Does There Exist a Cure? No definitive treatment, but there is optimism stemming from therapies targeted at different forms of MND. MND is not one disease - it is really multiple that culminate in the demise of nerve cells. A new drug called tofersen works in only one in 50 individuals, however it has been shown to slow - and in some cases even undo - a portion of the manifestations of MND. It has been described as "truly remarkable" and a "real moment of optimism" for the whole disease. Even though the medication 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 could decelerate the advancement of the disease and prolong life by a few months, but it cannot repair harm. Determining Life Expectancy for MND? Some people can survive for decades with MND, including renowned scientist Stephen Hawking, who was identified at the age of 22 and lived to 76. But for most, the disease advances rapidly and life expectancy is just a few years. Based on the charity MND Association, the disease claims the lives of a one-third of individuals within a twelve months and more than half within two years of identification. As the nerve cells cease functioning, swallowing and respiration become increasingly difficult and many people need nutritional support or breathing apparatus to help them remain living. Do Sports Professionals At Greater Risk to Be Diagnosed? The exact cause has not yet been found, but elite athletes seem overrepresented by MND. A pair of research projects from 2005 and 2009 showed that professional footballers have an increased risk of developing MND. A 2022 study by the University of Glasgow involving 400 ex- Scotland rugby union players determined they had an higher likelihood of developing the condition. Researchers also found that rugby players who have experienced repeated head injuries have physiological variations that may make them more susceptible to developing MND. The MND Association acknowledges there is a "correlation" between contact sports and MND. It noted that while the athletes researched were more likely to acquire MND, it did not prove the athletic activities directly led to the condition. The organization also emphasises that "reported MND instances in these studies is still relatively low, and so determining there is a certain elevated chance could be misinterpreted if this is merely a cluster due to statistical coincidence". Multiple prominent athletes have been identified with the condition in recent years. This encompasses former rugby players, soccer players, and cricket athletes. Across the Atlantic, baseball player Lou Gehrig died from the disease at the age of 39.