vol2 - Page 46
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VIL
_;A_I_T[I) I_EI_ICAL .U_[ .IX rFRJEATI_i_F
.- _iULT_iPkE .SCLEROS_ SPA_ITY •
AND HYPERPARATHYRO _01 $M
Findinl_s Of Fact ................
: .: _l_he #r_:_._eranc_ of .the: _ dence clearly establ i shes the loll owl ng facts
• ._/_ win r_pec'_ to _arijuana_s use in connection with multiple sclerosis, )
spasticity and hyperparathyroidism.
.L _Itiple sclerosis is the _aJor cau)e of neurological disability
:among young and middle=aged adults in the United States todays It is a life=long
di°sea_e_ It can be extre_ly debilitating to some of its victims but it does
not shorten the life span of most of them, Its cause is yet to be determined_
It attacks the myelln sheath_ the c0ating or insular'ion surrounding the )
message-carrylng nerve fibers in the brain and spln_l rot'd.. Once the myelin
sheath is destroyed, it is replaced by plaques of hardened tissue known as
sclerosis. During the inltial stages of the disease nerve impulses are trans-
mitted with only minor interruptions. As the disease progresses, the plaques
may completely obstrJct the impulses along c_rtaln _erve syste_so These o)str_c-
tions produce _alfunctions. The effects are sporadic i_ _st individuals and
the effects often occur episodically, trlgge_ either by malfunction of the
nerve impulses or by external factors.
")
2, Over t'ime _ny patients develop spasticity, the involuntary _n<_
abnormal contraction of muscle or muscle fiberso (Spasticity can also result
from serious injuries to the spinal cord, not related to multiple sclerosis.)
_. The symptoms of multiple sclerosis vary according to the area of
o o 6) C) ,,° 4 i 4
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