Portal de Murcia

www.portaldemurcia.com

• Home
• Business
• Hotels
• Restaurants
• News
• Advertisement

In Murcia there are 88 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, affected by this disease, which according to recent studies is increasing its prevalence, especially in women

The Chair of Clinical Neuroimmunology and Multiple Sclerosis at the Catholic University of Murcia is celebrating its III Annual Meeting on Multiple Sclerosis and Cognitive Impairment on the Campus of Los Jerónimos.

At the event, which closes Saturday, are participating mainly neurologists and neuropsychologists throughout Spain.

During the same are being exposed the latest data and developments on this inflammatory-degenerative disease that affects the central nervous system.

Among its hidden symptoms and difficult to recognize is the cognitive condition "difficult to quantify, detect, and therefore diagnose," says José Meca, director of the NICEM Chair at the UCAM.

"When we speak of cognitive impairment, we mainly do it by altering memory, slowing down thinking, processing ideas, executive abilities, attention", says Dr. Meca, who notes that these have nothing to do with the Alzheimer.

The population relates this disease with impairment of mobility, sensitivity, sight, "but we can not ignore these cognitives."

Causes and figures

So far, although much progress has been made in the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis, it is unknown what produces it.

"An environmental factor that we do not know that acts in people who are genetically predisposed," says José Meca, and points out that there are factors that may favor the appearance, such as lack of vitamin D, sun exposure, especially in childhood, tobacco that greatly increases the prevalence and aggressiveness of the disease - obesity, excessive consumption of salt.

"But these are not causes, but factors that increase their prevalence or make it more serious."

Its incidence in Spain is medium-high compared to other countries, between 90 and 100 cases per 100,000 inhabitants;

In the case of Murcia, there are 88 cases per 100,000 inhabitants affected by multiple sclerosis, which places it in the average.

But what all the international studies presented lately point out, is that "the prevalence is increasing more and more in women, very much more", says Mecca, and indicates that the studies point to the fact of the delay of the maternity age as factor.

Source: UCAM