JEDDAH: The King Khaled National Guard Hospital is hosting a Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Day, under the supervision of the Neurology Department at King Abdulaziz Medical City in Jeddah at the Crown Plaza hotel, Thursday. Dr. Hussein A. Al-Qahtani, chairman of the organizing committee, is both spearheading the initiative and will be delivering the inaugural talk on the definition of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and its causes. Other speakers include Dr. Omar Al-Wazzan from the King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, who will discuss the symptoms of MS; Dr. Ayman Emam from Saudi German hospital, who will speak on the subject of diagnosis; Dr. Ayman Asanosi on the management of MS; Dr. Halim Fadil on pregnancy in MS; Dr. Mustafa Al-Sa'adani on the “importance of treatment', Dr. Yahya Seddiq on “how to live with MS” and Khalid Fallatah on physiotherapy. The doctors – some of Jeddah's best neurologists – will then meet with patients and answer their questions. Multiple sclerosis is a nervous system disease that affects a person's brain and spinal cord. It damages the myelin sheath – the material that surrounds and protects nerve cells – and the damage slows down or blocks messages between the brain and body, leading to the symptoms of MS. These include visual disturbances, muscle weakness, trouble with coordination and balance, sensations such as numbness, prickling, or “pins and needles” and problems with thinking and the memory.
