The National Multiple Sclerosis Society has designated March 11-17 as MS Awareness Week. A website, www.MSConnection.org, is available for sharing stories about MS, connecting with others and learning more about MS, an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system that interrupts the flow of information within the brain, and between the brain and body. Symptoms can range from numbness and tingling to blindness and paralysis. Most people with MS are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, with at least two to three times more women than men being diagnosed with the disease.
The San Diego-based Pacific South Coast Chapter is marking the week with public service announcements aired on local TV stations and hosting 13th annual UCSD MS Symposium from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 16, at the Mission Valley Marriott Hotel, 8757 Rio San Dr., San Diego. Admission is free. The Symposium will feature the latest research information on multiple sclerosis, as well as symptom management and MS treatments. Speakers will include Dr. Jody Corey-Bloom, professor of neurosciences at the University of California San Diego and director of the UCSD MS Center, and Dr. Timothy Vollmer, medical director of the Rocky Mountain MS Center at the Anschutz Medical Campus in Westminster, Col. A continental breakfast will be provided. For reservation and more information, visit www.mspacific.org.
“People impacted by MS are connecting across the nation this week to combine their efforts, knowledge and hope in order to move us closer to a world free of multiple sclerosis, “ said Rich Israel, Pacific South Coast Chapter president.
