Although a little under 3 years into this officially I still feel relatively new to the MS world compared to many of the others on this forum. I recently took a poll asking what type of MS I had. I expected it to show the four typical types of MS, RRMS, PPMS, SPMS and PRMS, instead it showed this:
What type of multiple sclerosis do you have?
Benign MS
Relapsing-Remitting MS (RRMS)
Primary-Progressive MS (PPMS)
Secondary-Progressive MS (SPMS)
Progressive-Relapsing MS (PRMS)
Optic-spinal MS
Devic's disease
Balo concentric sclerosis,
Marburg or acute multiple sclerosis
Other please state:
Don't know:
Holy moly!
Besides the 4 usual categories, I've hear of CIS or clinically isolated syndrome. I think I may have heard of benign MS and the rare malignant MS which I think might be the same as Marburg MS, but I don't think that I have ever heard of any of the other kinds. I did do a very quick Google search and something came up with something about MS borderline diseases.
So have any of you been diagnosed with any of these other types or have you don't much reading/research on them. I was pretty surprised when I opened up the survey and saw how many choices there were!
So does has anyone on
When more is learned about a certain type, it can splinter off. Optical-Spinal MS and Devic's Disease are both the rebranded and distinct (from MS) Neuromyelitis Optica. NMO tends to affect certain genetic populations more than others (more common in Asia). I was tested for it to start because my first two relapses were vision related involving both optic nerve and brain stem.
I'm pretty sure as more is known about the aetiology of the individual subtypes of MS, they will begin to be referred to on individual terms and by other names. It will probably come out in the wash that primary progressive is a different, though similar, disease to the RR-to-SP MS version, just as NMO is seen (by most) as different but similar to MS.
Until MS is nailed down as to all the factors that cause it, I expect quite a bit of the ol' "nomenclature shuffle". It just happens as science progresses. You might also see something like "Myelitis Spectrum Diseases" to just shorthand a list that's bound to get longer.