多发性硬化症是一种少见病,其患病率为每10万人中1～5人左右。日本对多发性硬化症的认识经历了三个阶段,即不认识(1910—1950)、认识(1950—1970)、发展(1970年至今)。现在日本在多发性硬化症方面的研究已达世界先进水平。多发性硬化症的概念是,在中枢神经系统中有数个新旧病灶,病程有几次的复发与缓解。即空间的多灶性,时间的反复性。其病理改变是白质脱髓,病灶散在于大脑、脑干、小脑、脊髓和视神经。1.流行病学:患病年龄在15～50岁之 Multiple sclerosis is a rare disease whose prevalence is about 1 to 5 per 100,000 people. Japan’s understanding of multiple sclerosis has gone through three phases, namely, ignorance (1910-1950), understanding (1950-1970) and development (1970-present). Now Japan’s research in multiple sclerosis has reached the advanced world level. The concept of multiple sclerosis is that there are several new and old lesions in the central nervous system, several times the course of recurrence and remission. That multi-focal space, time repeatability. The pathological changes are white matter demyelination, lesions scattered in the brain, brain stem, cerebellum, spinal cord and optic nerve. 1. Epidemiology: sick at the age of 15 to 50 years of age