What is MND and Do Sportspeople At Higher Risk to Be Diagnosed?

MND impacts nerve cells found in the cerebrum and spinal cord, that instruct your muscles what to do.

This causes them to lose strength and become rigid over time and typically impacts your walking, speak, consume food and breathe.

This is a relatively rare disease that is most common in individuals over 50, but grown-ups of all ages can be impacted.

An individual's chance in their life of developing MND is 1 out of 300.

Approximately 5,000 people in the UK are living with the condition at any one time.

Researchers are not sure what causes MND, but it is probable to be a mix of the genes - or biological traits - you get from your mother and father when you are delivered, and other environmental influences.

For up to 10% of individuals with MND, particular genetic factors are far more significant.

There is usually a hereditary background of the illness in such instances.

What are the Early Symptoms of the Disease?

MND affects everyone differently.

Not everyone has the identical signs, or experiences them in the same order.

The disease can progress at different speeds too.

Some of the most common signs are:

• muscle weakness and cramps
• stiff joints
• problems with how you speak
• complications involving swallowing, consuming food and drinking
• reduced cough reflex

Is There a Treatment?

No definitive treatment, but there is optimism stemming from therapies focused on different forms of MND.

MND is not a single illness - it is really multiple that result in the death of nerve cells.

A new drug known as tofersen is effective in only one in 50 patients, however it has been shown to decelerate - and in some cases even reverse - some of the manifestations of MND.

It has been referred to as "absolutely groundbreaking" and a "real moment of hope" for the whole disease.

Although the drug has recently received approval in the European Union, it is not yet available in the UK.

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

Riluzole may slow down the progression of the disease and increase survival by several months, but it does not reverse damage.

Determining Survival Rate for MND?

Certain individuals 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 illness 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 24 months of identification.

As the neurons cease functioning, swallowing and breathing become more challenging and many people need feeding tubes or respiratory aids to help them stay alive.

Do Sports Professionals More Likely to Be Diagnosed?

The exact cause has not yet been found, but elite athletes appear disproportionately affected by MND.

Two studies from 2005 and 2009 showed that soccer players have an increased risk of developing MND.

Research from 2022 by the University of Glasgow including four hundred ex- Scotland rugby athletes concluded they had an increased risk of developing the disease.

Scientists additionally discovered that rugby athletes who have experienced repeated head injuries have biological differences that could render 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 researched were had a greater chance to acquire MND, it did not prove the sports directly caused the disease.

The charity also stresses that "documented MND instances in this research is still relatively low, and so concluding there is a definite increased risk could be misunderstood if this is simply a grouping due to statistical coincidence".

Multiple prominent athletes have been diagnosed with the disease in the past few years.

This encompasses ex- rugby internationals, soccer players, and cricketers.

Across the Atlantic, baseball player Lou Gehrig succumbed to the disease at the age of 39.