Family characteristics and multiple sclerosis
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Family characteristics and multiple sclerosis
There is some evidence that multiple sclerosis (MS) may be a genetic disorder.
- MS tends to run in families. About 15 out of 100 people who have MS have a relative with MS, most often a brother or a sister.1
- Certain genetic characteristics associated with the immune system appear more frequently in people who have MS. These features may indicate that there are one or more genes that may increase the chance of developing MS.
References
Citations
Ropper AH, Brown RH (2005). Multiple sclerosis and allied demyelinative diseases. In Adams and Victor's Principles of Neurology, 8th ed., pp. 771–796. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Credits
| Author | Monica Rhodes |
| Editor | Kathleen M. Ariss, MS |
| Associate Editor | Denele Ivins |
| Associate Editor | Pat Truman, MATC |
| Primary Medical Reviewer | Anne C. Poinier, MD - Internal Medicine |
| Specialist Medical Reviewer | Colin Chalk, MD, CM, FRCPC - Neurology |
| Last Updated | February 28, 2008 |
| Last updated: | February 28, 2008 |
|---|---|
| Author: | Monica Rhodes |
| Reviewed By: | Anne C. Poinier, MD - Internal Medicine, Colin Chalk, MD, CM, FRCPC - Neurology |
| Editors: | Kathleen M. Ariss, MS, Pat Truman, MATC |
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