Multiple Sclerosis expert speaks to students at Bettendorf

On May 4, multiple sclerosis expert Emily Blosberg spoke to students about the often debilitating disease. MS is an unpredictable disease in the central nervous system that disrupts the flow of information within the brain and between the brain and body.

There are three forms of MS. The most common form is relapsing MS, and it is the most stable of the three. Then there are also primary and secondary progressive MS. Primary progressive is a continuous progression of the disease. Secondary progressive starts with relapsing but then it progresses. While there are three categories, everyone’s experiences are different.

“I like to call it the snowflake disease because every snowflake is different,” Blosberg said.

Blosberg was diagnosed with MS at the age of 15. Her common symptoms include fatigue and vision problems.

Blosberg used several demonstrations to show how MS affects the body. She took volunteers to show how a nerve transmits messages with and without MS. Later in the presentation, she had a volunteer try to read a paragraph while wearing sunglasses to show how their vision worsens as well. Finally students had the opportunity to try opening candy while wearing gloves to show how hard it is to perform daily tasks with loss of feeling in the fingers.

The QC walk for MS took place on May 5 at Veterans Memorial Park in Bettendorf.