Pathogenic mechanisms of depression in multiple sclerosis

摘要

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic and unpredictable neurological disease commonly associated with a host of symptoms such as sensory and motor deficits, fatigue, ataxia, blindness, pain, cognitive impairment, and depression. It is the commonest disabling neurological condition in adults of working age.1 MS is an autoimmune condition characterized by destruction of the myelin sheaths in the CNS. This condition affects twice as many women as men and is associated with accumulating levels of physical disability. However, there is a large variation between patients in the type, severity, and course of the illness. In the majority of cases, the disease begins with a relapsing-remitting course characterized by acute exacerbation of symptoms followed by periods of stability. This is typically followed by a phase of continuous deterioration, which is referred to as secondary progression.