vol2 - Page 46



Page 46 Previous , Next , Original Image
Return to Index

 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




Previous , Next , Return to Index