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Motor neurone disease impacts nerve cells found in the brain and spine, that instruct your muscle tissue how to function.

This leads them to weaken and become rigid gradually and usually affects how you walk, speak, eat and breathe.

It is a relatively rare disease that is most frequent in people over 50, but adults of all ages can be affected.

A person's chance in their life of contracting MND is 1 out of 300.

About 5,000 people in the UK will have the condition at any one time.

Researchers are not sure the cause of MND, but it is probable to be a mix of the genetic material - or inherited characteristics - you inherit from your parents when you are born, and additional lifestyle factors.

For up to 10% of individuals with MND, specific genes are far more significant.

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

Identifying the First Signs of the Disease?

MND impacts each person uniquely.

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

The condition can progress at different speeds too.

Among the most common indicators are:

• muscle weakness and muscle spasms
• stiff joints
• problems with how you speak
• issues with swallowing, eating and taking fluids
• reduced cough reflex

Does There Exist a Cure?

There is no cure, but there is optimism stemming from treatments targeted at various types of MND.

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

An innovative medication known as tofersen works in only one in 50 individuals, however it has been shown to slow - and in some cases even reverse - a portion of the manifestations of MND.

It has been described 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 currently accessible in the UK.

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

Riluzole could decelerate the progression of the disease and prolong life by several months, but it cannot repair damage.

Determining Survival Rate for MND?

Some people can survive for decades with MND, such as renowned scientist Stephen Hawking, who was diagnosed at the twenty-two years old and survived until 76.

But for most, the illness progresses quickly and life expectancy is just a few years.

According to the non-profit MND Association, the disease kills a one-third of individuals within a year and over 50% within 24 months of diagnosis.

As the nerve cells stop working, swallowing and respiration become increasingly difficult and many people need feeding tubes or breathing apparatus to help them stay alive.

Do Sports Professionals At Greater Risk to Receive a Diagnosis?

The exact cause has not been identified, but top-level sportspeople seem overrepresented by MND.

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

Research from 2022 by the University of Glasgow including four hundred former Scotland rugby athletes determined they had an increased risk of acquiring the condition.

Scientists additionally discovered that rugby players who have experienced multiple concussions have physiological variations that may make them more prone to developing MND.

The MND Association acknowledges there is a "link" between contact sports and MND.

It added that while the athletes researched were had a greater chance to acquire MND, it did not prove the sports directly led to the condition.

The charity also stresses that "documented MND instances in this research is remains quite small, and so determining there is a certain elevated chance could be misinterpreted if this is simply a grouping due to statistical coincidence".

Multiple high-profile athletes have been diagnosed with the disease in recent years.

These include ex- rugby players, soccer players, and cricket athletes.

Across the Atlantic, baseball player Lou Gehrig died from the disease aged 39.