Demyelination

Breakdown of the fatty sheaths that surround and electrically insulate nerve fibres. The sheaths provide nutrients to the nerve fibres and are vital to the passage of electrical impulses along them. Demyelination “short-circuits” the functioning of the nerve, causing loss of sensation, coordination, and power in specific areas of the body. The affected nerves may be within the central nervous system (CNS) or be part of the. Patches of demyelination are visible on MRI of the brain in multiple sclerosis. The cause of the demyelination is not known. In many cases, demyelination attacks alternate with periods of partial or complete recovery of nerve function. In encephalomyelitis, there is inflammation of nerve cells within the CNS and sometimes areas of demyelination.