🔗 Share this article Understanding Motor Neurone Disease and Do Sportspeople More Likely to Receive a Diagnosis? Motor neurone disease impacts nerves located in the cerebrum and spine, which tell your muscles what to do. This leads them to weaken and become rigid gradually and typically impacts your walking, talk, eat and respire. This is a quite uncommon disease that is most common in people over 50, but grown-ups of all ages can be impacted. An individual's lifetime risk of developing MND is one in 300. About five thousand adults in the UK are living with the disease at any given moment. Scientists are uncertain what causes MND, but it is probable to be a mix of the genetic material - or inherited characteristics - you inherit from your mother and father when you are delivered, and additional lifestyle factors. In as many as 10% of individuals with MND, particular genetic factors play a much larger role. There is usually a hereditary background of the disease in such instances. What are the Early Symptoms of the Condition? MND affects everyone differently. Not all individuals has the same symptoms, or experiences them in the identical sequence. The disease can advance at different speeds too. Some of the most common signs are: muscle weakness and muscle spasms rigid articulations problems with your speech issues with ingesting, eating and taking fluids weakened coughing Does There Exist a Treatment? No cure, but there is optimism coming from therapies targeted at different forms of MND. MND is not a single illness - it is actually multiple that result in the death of nerve cells. An innovative medication known as tofersen works in just 2% of patients, however it has been demonstrated to slow - and in some cases even reverse - 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 drug has recently been approved in the European Union, it is not yet available in the UK. There is only one drug presently approved for the treatment of MND in the UK and approved by the NHS. Riluzole could decelerate the progression of the condition and increase survival by a few months, but it does not reverse damage. What is Survival Rate for MND? Some people can live for many years with MND, such as renowned scientist Stephen Hawking, who was identified at the age of 22 and survived until 76. But for most, the disease progresses quickly and survival time is just a few years. Based on the charity MND Association, the disease claims the lives of a one-third of people within a year and over 50% within two years of identification. As the neurons stop working, swallowing and respiration become more challenging and many people need feeding tubes or breathing apparatus to help them remain living. Are Athletes More Likely to Be Diagnosed? The precise reason has not been identified, but elite athletes appear overrepresented by MND. Two studies from 2005 and 2009 showed that professional footballers have an increased risk of contracting MND. Research from 2022 by the University of Glasgow involving 400 former Scotland rugby athletes determined they had an increased risk of developing the condition. Researchers additionally discovered that rugby athletes who have suffered multiple concussions have physiological variations that may make them more prone to developing MND. The MND Association recognizes there is a "link" between contact sports and MND. It noted that while the sportspeople researched were had a greater chance to acquire MND, it did not prove the athletic activities directly led to the disease. The organization also stresses that "reported MND cases in this research is remains quite small, and so determining there is a certain elevated chance could be misunderstood if this is merely a grouping due to random chance". Several high-profile athletes have been identified with the condition in recent years. These include former rugby union internationals, soccer players, and cricket athletes. In the United States, baseball player Lou Gehrig succumbed to the disease aged 39.