🔗 Share this article What is MND and Are Athletes More Likely to Receive a Diagnosis? MND impacts nerve cells located in the cerebrum and spine, that instruct your muscles how to function. This causes them to weaken and become rigid gradually and typically impacts your walking, speak, eat and respire. It is a relatively rare disease that is most common in individuals above age fifty, but adults of all ages can be impacted. An individual's lifetime risk of developing MND is 1 out of 300. Approximately five thousand adults in the UK will have the condition at any given moment. Scientists are not sure the cause of MND, but it is probable to be a mix of the genetic material - or biological traits - you inherit from your mother and father when you are born, and additional lifestyle factors. For up to one in 10 people with MND, particular genetic factors play a much larger role. There is usually a hereditary background of the illness in such instances. Identifying the First Signs of the Condition? MND impacts each person uniquely. Not all individuals has the identical signs, or encounters them in the identical sequence. The disease can progress at varying rates too. Among the most frequent signs are: muscle weakness and cramps rigid articulations difficulties in how you speak complications involving swallowing, consuming food and drinking reduced cough reflex Is There a Treatment? There is no cure, but there is optimism stemming from therapies targeted at different forms of MND. MND is not one disease - it is actually several that culminate in the demise of motor neurones. An innovative medication known as tofersen works in only one in 50 individuals, however it has been shown to decelerate - and in certain instances even undo - some of the manifestations of MND. It has been described as "absolutely groundbreaking" and a "significant point of optimism" for the whole disease. Even though the medication has recently been approved in the EU, it is not currently accessible in the UK. There is only one drug currently licensed for the treatment of MND in the UK and approved by the NHS. Riluzole may slow down the advancement of the disease and prolong life by several months, but it cannot repair harm. What is Survival Rate for MND? Some people can live for many years with MND, such as renowned scientist Stephen Hawking, who was diagnosed at the twenty-two years old and lived to 76. But for the majority, the disease progresses quickly and life expectancy is only several years. According to the non-profit MND Association, the condition claims the lives of a third of individuals within a twelve months and more than half within two years of identification. As the nerve cells stop working, ingestion and breathing become increasingly difficult and many people need feeding tubes or respiratory aids to help them stay alive. Do Sports Professionals At Greater Risk to Receive a Diagnosis? The precise reason has not been identified, but top-level sportspeople appear overrepresented by MND. Two studies from 2005 and 2009 showed that professional footballers have an increased risk of developing MND. A 2022 study by the University of Glasgow involving four hundred former Scotland rugby athletes determined they had an increased risk of acquiring the condition. Researchers additionally discovered that rugby players who have suffered multiple concussions have physiological variations that may make them more prone to contracting MND. The MND Association recognizes there is a "link" between collision sports and MND. It noted that while the athletes researched were more likely to acquire MND, it did not prove the athletic activities directly caused the condition. The organization also emphasises that "reported MND instances in this research is remains quite small, and so concluding there is a definite increased risk could be misinterpreted if this is simply a cluster due to statistical coincidence". Several high-profile athletes have been diagnosed with the disease in the past few years. These include former rugby union players, soccer players, and cricketers. Across the Atlantic, MLB athlete Lou Gehrig succumbed to the condition aged 39.