Canadian researchers from the University of British Columbia have found that fatigue, anxiety, pain, and dizziness can precede a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis (MS) by more than ten years. The study results were published in JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association).

The scientists came to this conclusion after analyzing the medical records of 12,000 patients over a 25-year period. The researchers found that 15 years before the onset of characteristic neurological symptoms, future MS patients were significantly more likely to visit general practitioners. Over time, these visits began to be accompanied by complaints of fatigue, pain, anxiety, and depression, and some of the subjects repeatedly consulted psychiatrists.

Approximately eight to nine years before diagnosis, there was an increase in visits to ophthalmologists and neurologists for vision problems and eye pain. Then, about three to five years before the onset of the disease, there was an increase in the number of patients visiting emergency rooms and radiology departments. A year before the onset of obvious signs of MS, there was a “spike” in visits to neurologists.

Scientists emphasize that the presence of these symptoms does not necessarily mean that a person will soon develop multiple sclerosis. However, early diagnosis can play a key role in slowing the progression of the disease.

Multiple sclerosis is a chronic, incurable disease in which the immune system attacks the brain and spinal cord. It can cause muscle spasms, breathing and swallowing problems, and increases the risk of fatal complications, including infections. It is most commonly diagnosed between the ages of 30 and 40, but the study showed that the first signs can appear much earlier.