Is Eb v a Cause of M S?

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M s affects around two point eight million people world wide as the immune system attacks nerves in the brain and spinal cord, stripping off their protective milin sheathing. People with m s experienced symptoms including fatigue, numbness, pain, loss of vision and depression. Drugs can slow the progress of disease, but don't completely prevent symptoms. Several factors seem to make the immune system miss fire and drive m s. Lack of sunshine and vitamin d have a role. Genetic factors raise the risk at least a little bit.

Results from a huge epidemiological study found that infection by the Epstein-Barr virus increases the risk of developing multiple sclerosis 32-fold. This result, combined with emerging mechanistic insights into how the virus triggers brain damage, are raising the prospect of treating or preventing MS.

These advances come at a time when researchers are more interested than ever in what happens in the months and years following a viral infection, and highlights the issues untangling the relationships between infectious diseases and chronic conditions.

This is an audio version of our Feature: The quest to prevent MS — and understand other post-viral diseases.

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