Vascular Disease among Hospitalized MS patients

Jamie · Post by **Jamie** » Fri Jul 24, 2009 6:51 pm

This study took place between 1988 and 2002.

It found that MS patients were less likely to be hospitalized for ischemic heart disease (OR = 0.58, 95% CI = 0.51-0.66) or myocardial infarction (OR = 0.78, 95% CI = 0.64-0.96), but more likely to be hospitalized for ischemic stroke (OR = 1.66, 95% CI = 1.33-2.09) than matched non-MS controls.

The conclusion:

MS patients have decreased rates of hospital admission for ischemic heart disease and myocardial infarction, but increased rates of hospitalization for ischemic stroke as compared to the general non-MS population.

Here is the abstract:

http://content.karger.com/ProdukteDB/pr ... /000128103

I looked up ischemic stroke and it can be caused by arterial blockages or other causes that reduce the amount of oxygen in the brain.

"Less commonly, symptoms develop slowly. They result from strokes that continue to worsen for several hours to a day or two, as a steadily enlarging area of brain tissue dies. Such strokes are called evolving strokes. The progression of symptoms and damage is usually interrupted by somewhat stable periods, during which the area temporarily stops enlarging or some improvement occurs. Such strokes are usually due to the formation of clots in a narrowed artery."

Stable periods with improvement? Sound like a relapse/remit?

What if MS is just the vascular equivalent of this and thus slower and less dramatic than an already understood arterial blockage. Check out the symptoms:

Blindness in one eye
Inability to see out of the same side in both eyes
Abnormal sensations, weakness, or paralysis in one arm or leg or on one side of the body

When the arteries that branch from the vertebral arteries (which carry blood along the back of the neck to the brain) are affected, the following are most common:

Dizziness and vertigo
Double vision
Generalized weakness on both sides of the body
Many other symptoms, such as difficulty speaking (for example, slurred speech), impaired consciousness (such as confusion), loss of coordination, and urinary incontinence, can occur.

Now what the hell does THAT sound like??

Interestingly here are the things that can exacerbate the underlying condition:

Heart-related problems: Blood clots may form in the heart or on a heart valve (including artificial valves). Strokes due to such blood clots are most common among people who have recently had heart surgery and people who have a heart valve disorder or an abnormal heart rhythm (arrhythmia), especially a fast, irregular heart rhythm called atrial fibrillation.
Blood disorders: Some disorders, such as an excess of red blood cells (polycythemia), make blood thick, increasing the risk of blood clots. Some disorders, such as antiphospholipid syndrome and a high homocysteine level in the blood (hyperhomocysteinemia), make blood more likely to clot.
Oral contraceptives: Taking oral contraceptives, particularly those with a high estrogen dose, increases the risk of blood clots.

This ties with the anecdotal evidence that MS'ers have low blood pressure and Dr. Dake is finding a lot have blood that is difficult to thin and coagulates very well.

Oral contraceptives (just thinkng out loud) could that add to the 'prevalence in women' link? Bit of a stretch maybe. There are plenty of congenital diseases that are more prevelant in one sex or the other though.

Ischemic stroke: http://www.merck.com/mmhe/sec06/ch086/ch086c.html

Loobie · Post by **Loobie** » Sat Jul 25, 2009 3:38 am

Jamie,

This is VERY interesting reading. You had your thinking cap on didn't you

. But seriously, I enjoyed this a lot. The blindness in one eye, the dizziness. Man, you are speaking directly to me and I hope your thinking is spot on. I used Mel as an example in my blog but only used her initial since I didn't ask you. I also figured out how to open that thing up for anyone to comment on. They kind of hide that from you for some reason and I stumbled across it the other day. This is good stuff and I can really relate.

turtle_fi · Post by **turtle_fi** » Sat Jul 25, 2009 6:00 am

could be pill be linked to the fact that MS is diagnosed most typically for young women?

Jamie · Post by **Jamie** » Sat Jul 25, 2009 10:36 am

Lew,

Feel free to use Mel's name.

I read this last night and had a lightbulb moment, you know?

Still makes sense this morning, if one can get this in arteries then why not veins? It also stands to reason the hypoxia would be slower and less damaging when caused by venous reflux but eventually the symptoms would build up to the above.

Jamie