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MND impacts nerve cells located in the cerebrum and spine, that instruct your muscles what to do.

This leads them to lose strength and become rigid gradually and typically impacts how you walk, talk, consume food and breathe.

This is a relatively rare condition that is most common in individuals above age fifty, but grown-ups of any age can be affected.

An individual's lifetime risk of developing MND is one in 300.

About 5,000 adults in the UK will have 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 biological traits - you get from your parents when you are delivered, and additional lifestyle factors.

In as many as 10% of people with MND, particular genetic factors are far more significant.

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

What are the First Signs of the Disease?

MND affects everyone differently.

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

The condition can advance at different speeds too.

Among the most frequent indicators are:

• muscle weakness and muscle spasms
• rigid articulations
• problems with your speech
• issues with ingesting, consuming food and drinking
• reduced cough reflex

Does There Exist a Cure?

There is no definitive treatment, but there is optimism coming from treatments targeted at various types of MND.

MND is not one disease - it is actually multiple that result in the demise of nerve cells.

A new drug known as tofersen works in only one in 50 patients, however it has been demonstrated to decelerate - and in certain instances even undo - some of the manifestations of MND.

It has been described as "absolutely groundbreaking" and a "real moment of hope" for the entire condition.

Even though the medication has recently received approval in the EU, it is not yet available in the UK.

Just one pharmaceutical currently licensed for the treatment of MND in the UK and approved by the NHS.

Riluzole could decelerate the advancement of the condition and increase survival by a few months, but it cannot repair damage.

Determining Survival Rate for MND?

Some people can live for many years with MND, including theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking, who was diagnosed at the age of 22 and survived until 76.

But for most, the disease progresses quickly and life expectancy is only several years.

Based on the non-profit MND Association, the condition kills a one-third of individuals within a twelve months and over 50% within two years of diagnosis.

As the neurons stop working, swallowing and breathing become increasingly difficult and many people need feeding tubes or breathing apparatus to help them remain living.

Do Sports Professionals At Greater Risk to Receive a Diagnosis?

The precise reason has not been identified, but elite athletes seem overrepresented by MND.

A pair of research projects from 2005 and 2009 indicated that soccer players have an elevated chance of contracting MND.

A 2022 study by the Glasgow University including 400 ex- Scotland rugby athletes determined they had an higher likelihood of developing the disease.

Researchers also found that rugby players who have suffered multiple concussions have physiological variations that could render them more susceptible to developing MND.

The MND Association acknowledges there is a "correlation" between collision sports and MND.

It added that while the athletes studied were more likely to develop MND, it did not show the athletic activities directly led to the condition.

The charity also emphasises that "documented MND cases in this research is still relatively low, and so concluding there is a certain elevated chance could be misinterpreted if this is merely a cluster due to random chance".

Several prominent sports figures have been identified with the condition in recent years.

This encompasses former rugby union players, footballers, and cricketers.

Across the Atlantic, MLB athlete Lou Gehrig died from the condition aged 39.