The Transverse Myelitis Association Providing 10 Years of Service to its Members

The Transverse Myelitis Association is recognizing ten years of service to its members. The was Association was established in 1994 to facilitate support and networking opportunities amongst families; to provide educational information; and to advocate for and support research and innovative treatment efforts. Transverse Myelitis is a rare neuroimmunologic disorder of the central nervous system.

Columbus, OH (PRWEB) August 17, 2004 -- The Transverse Myelitis Association is recognizing ten years of service to its members. Transverse Myelitis is a rare neurological disorder that is part of a spectrum of neuroimmunologic diseases of the central nervous system. Other disorders in this spectrum include, Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis (ADEM), Optic Neuritis, and Neuromyelitis Optica (Devic's disease). The membership of The Transverse Myelitis Association includes persons with all of these disorders, their family members and caregivers and the medical professionals who treat people with these disorders. The Transverse Myelitis Association is a non-profit and international organization started in 1994 by family members and persons with the Transverse Myelitis diagnosis. The TMA is an organization dedicated to advocacy for those who have these rare neuroimmunologic diseases.

There is tremendous variability in the presentation of TM symptoms, which are based on the level of the spinal cord affected, and the severity of the damage to the myelin and neurons in the spinal cord. The symptoms of TM include muscle weakness, paralysis, parasthesias or uncomfortable nerve sensations, neuropathic pain, spasticity, fatigue, depression, and bowel, bladder and sexual dysfunction. TM can be acute or slow developing. TM may occur in isolation or in the setting of another illness. When it occurs without apparent underlying cause, it is referred to as idiopathic. Idiopathic TM is assumed to be a result of abnormal activation of the immune system against the spinal cord. TM often develops in the setting of viral and bacterial infections.

The age of onset of this condition can be from infancy to older adult (5 months to 80 years). The peak ages for a TM diagnosis appear to be between 10 to 19 years and after 40 years of age. Both males and females seem to be equally diagnosed. It is a rare disorder with an incidence of between 1 and 8 new cases per million people per year.

The Transverse Myelitis Association facilitates support and networking opportunities amongst families; provides educational information; functions as a clearinghouse for articles and research literature; and investigates, advocates for and supports research and innovative treatment efforts.

Dr. Siegel is a resident of Columbus, Ohio and the President of The Transverse Myelitis Association. His wife, Pauline, contracted TM in 1994; she was totally paralyzed from the waist down from an inflammatory attack to her spinal cord. Pauline experienced a moderate recovery from her TM symptoms after years of rehabilitation. She is a second grade teacher in the Worthington School District.

According to Dr. Siegel, When Pauline got TM, we had never heard of it. There was very little published about it in the medical literature, so we werent able to learn much about it. Even the physicians who were treating Pauline seemed very confused about the cause of her illness and her prognosis. We got involved in order to help people avoid the same frightening and isolating experience that we went through."

The TMA has more than 5000 members from every state in the United States and from more than 80 countries around the world. The TMA publishes a newsletter for members twice a year, which contains articles by physicians and health care providers. There are also articles written by people with the rare neuroimmunologic disorders. A membership directory is published and distributed annually. The TMA assists in the development of local support groups and is involved in various fund-raising efforts, such as Reading for Rachel, to raise awareness and funds for research. The TMA supports and conducts symposiums and workshops involving both professionals and patients for the exchange of information regarding research and treatment strategies for persons with the rare neuroimmunologic disorders of the central nervous system.

For more information about TM and the TMA, please call Sanford J. Siegel at (614)766-1806 or visit the TMA website at www.myelitis.org.

Contact: Sanford J. Siegel, Ph.D.

(614)766-1806

ssiegel@myelitis.org

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