Multiple scars is more commonly known as MS and it is an inflammatory disease of the fatty substance known as myelin, which acts as a protective sheath around nerve endings in the spinal cord, brain and at the rear of the eyes. When inflammation occurs, damage is done to the myelin and this is known as demyelination; this in turn causes scars to appear in that area.
As with any scar tissue, it is generally thicker and not as receptive to stimuli, hence signals cannot pass across the nerve as effectively as they once used to. MS refers to a multiple sites of damage or multiple scars, in fact sclerosis actually means scar. In MS a new attack may appear in the same area as before, or it may move onto a new area and create a new set of scars.
The most common form of multiple scars is relapsing remitting, which means it comes and goes in waves of attacks and then a period of quietness where the body heals itself. In around 80% of cases this is the form found, however there are other forms of MS and these can be far more aggressive with little to no remission time.
How do multiple scars cause the damage?
White blood cells are responsible for immune system responses in the body. However in MS they attack areas of the body where no infection is present and cause inflammation. During an attack the myelin is striped from the area and the nerve endings are exposed, as a result the nerve cannot function properly and signals across the damaged area take longer to reach their destination. For example, if a hot surface was to be touched the signal telling the brain it is hot and to remove the hand will be delayed, therefore resulting in a worse burn to the hand than it would have been if the nerve was undamaged.
How does the body respond to multiple scars?
The human body is a remarkable machine, even when multiple scars have occurred the body is capable of repairing some of the damage caused during the remission periods. Even when this is not possible and repair cannot take place the nerves can generally resume some level of function.
