The nervous system is a complex system of nerve cells and tissues. It detects, inspects and controls the body’s response to various internal and external stimuli. Primarily, the nervous system consists of the central nervous system and the peripheral nervous system.
The brain and spinal cord constitute the central nervous system. The peripheral nervous system consists of nerves and connects the central nervous system to the rest of the body.
Basically, the nervous system works through a number of nerve cells or neurons that carry messages from various parts of the body through electric impulses. Consequently, any condition affecting the normal functioning of the nervous system is referred to as a nervous system disease or disorder.
Some common nervous system diseases are Huntington disease, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, Multiple Sclerosis, Diabetic Neuropathy, Mononeuropathy, Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, Brain Tumor, Guillain-Barre Syndrome, Neuritis, Nerve Compression Syndrome, Epilepsy, Meningitis, Encephalitis and various other diseases.
Impact of Nervous System Diseases
It is important to note that diseases in the nervous system are considered serious because by affecting the nervous system these diseases cause disturbance throughout the body. Most of the nervous system diseases are caused due to genetic factors. Therefore, hereditary factors usually play a significant role in causing diseases in the nervous system.
On the other hand, certain diseases may also be caused due to infections involving the nervous system. At times, lifestyle factors and habits like Alcoholism and intake of certain drugs also contribute in causing serious diseases that ultimately affect normal functioning of the nervous system.
Stress, Depression, Anxiety and other psychological conditions tend to affect the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems that are parts of the autonomic nervous system, which in turn is a part of the peripheral nervous system.
The organic nervous system diseases or disorders such as tumors, scleroses etc generally give rise to bodily symptoms. On the other hand, there are certain nervous disorders that do not caused any significant bodily systems, for instance Hysteria, Epilepsy and other similar diseases.
Such diseases are usually characterized by memory loss, altered behavior, confusion and other similar complex problems. Most of the diseases and disorders of the nervous system are degenerative in nature, that is, they are characterized by progressive degeneration with the advancement of the disease.
More often than not, the accurate diagnosis as well as effective treatment of most of the diseases of the nervous system is a challenging task. The branch of medicine dealing with such issues related to the nervous system is called Neurology.
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