A simple eye exam can track the progress of multiple sclerosis

A quick scan of the eye may offer a simple and painless way for multiple sclerosis patients to track the progress of the disease. Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Multiple Sclerosis Center in Baltimore have discovered that by observing the nerve fibers in the back of the retina, one can get a fairly accurate picture of the decrease in brain volume, a marker of the progression of sclerosis. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a disease that affects the central nervous system (brain, optic nerves and spinal cord) and is characterized by the destruction of the myelin sheath that insulates nerve fibers (demyelination). Speed and efficiency are compromised: performing harmonious, rapid and coordinated movements becomes increasingly difficult as the disease progresses. The areas where the myelin has been damaged or destroyed are called "plaques" or "lesions", which appear as hardened areas or scars: in multiple sclerosis these scars form at different times and in different areas of the brain and cerebral medulla: from here the name of multiple sclerosis (multiple scars).