Signs of multiple sclerosis may seem for years before diagnosis, the results of the study

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) can show warning signs long before conventional symptoms appear – and mental health problems could be among the first red flags, according to new research.

A study by the University of British Columbia (UBC), published last week in Jama Network Open, examined medical records of 2,038 patients with autoimmune disease and compared them to 10,182 patients without him.

Researchers have found that future patients with SEP had high rates of mental health problems, psychiatrist and general visits to vague symptom complaints such as fatigue and pain – all from 15 years before the start of clear symptoms.

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“These results suggest that MS could start much earlier than what has been recognized before, with mental health problems as early indicators,” the researchers wrote.

The MP, which attacks the protective myelin coating around nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, affects around a million adults in the United States, according to the Cleveland Clinic.

Mental health problems can be early indicators of multiple sclerosis, according to researchers. (istock)

Although there is no known cause or healing, treatment can help manage symptoms and slow down the progression of the disease, which can cause muscle weakness, vision changes, numbness and memory problems.

Previous research has shown that during the five to 10 years preceding a diagnosis of MS, people generally seek doctors more frequently for headaches, fatigue, sleep disorders, pain, gastrointestinal problems and psychiatric concerns, researchers wrote.

Still late? Mental health could be to blame, say the experts

The study of the UBC, however, followed the visits of doctors in the 25 years preceding the start of symptoms in patients with SE in British Columbia.

They found a regular increase in general training visits from 15 years old, followed by more frequent travel in psychiatrists from 12 years before the symptoms.

Visits to neurology and ophthalmology have increased eight to nine years ago, probably due to blurred vision or eye pain, two current early symptoms of MS.

An early increase in psychiatric visits may indicate the first stages of the immune deregulation linked to MS, suggests the study. (istock)

Three to five years before the start, emergency and radiology visits have increased sharply. In almost all specialties, doctors’ visits culminated during the year preceding the start of the symptoms.

Psychiatrist’s consultations, in particular, skyrocketed 159% before the start of MS, and mental health visits increased by 76%, according to research.

The increase in psychiatric visits can be correlated at the early stages of MEV immune deregulation, because higher levels of certain chemicals linked to inflammation and problems with the blood-brain barrier can affect mood, have noted researchers.

Improve results

While most people who experience mental health problems, fatigue and headache do not develop MS, researchers have declared that the recognition and characterization of the “Prodroque phase” – the early period marked by subtle symptoms – could accelerate diagnosis and improve results.

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“Mental health problems and linked to psychiatry can be among the first characteristics of the SEP Prodrome phase, preceding the symptoms linked to the nervous system and visits to neurologists of several years,” Dr. Helen Tremlett, professor of neurology at UBC, Fox News Digital, told Fox News.

“This suggests that in the future, it may be possible to recognize and manage the early MS, to maximize mental health and the brain reserve,” she said.

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The results also open up “new avenues for research on early biomarkers, lifestyle factors and other potential triggers that can be at stake during this previously neglected phase of the disease,” added the researcher.

The signs of early alert of MS can emerge more than a decade before conventional neurological symptoms, according to experts. (istock)

Monitoring early alert signs could also help detect other brain diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease, and ensure early intervention, noted Tremlett.

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Between 2016 and 2021, MS cases increased globally by around 2.2 million to 2.9 million, according to research published in July in the journal Frontiers in Neurology.

The disease has drawn public attention in recent years while celebrities like Selma Blair, Christina Applegate and Montel Williams have shared their life experiences with MS.