Etymologically speaking, the word sclerosis derives from the Greek "σκλήρωσις", lexically composed by the root "skleros" which means "hard", plus the suffix "osis" which refers to "disease" or can be called as a synonym of this, therefore according to its etymology the term can be related to the hardening of an organ. The famous dictionary of the Spanish Royal Academy defines sclerosis as a medical term, referring to the hardening or pathological tenacity of an organ or tissue; for his part, another meaning stands out, alluding to the "dullness or rigidity of a mental faculty". This rigidity affects due to the uncontrolled increase of the connective tissuesthat are caused after a given disease. Thanks to deterioration, autoimmune diseases, aging and other factors, sclerosis occurs, thus affecting the organs and tissues causing their loss of elasticity.
Among the types of sclerosis we can find: multiple sclerosis, cutaneous sclerosis, progressive systemic sclerosis and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
Multiple sclerosis can be described as a chronic disease that is caused by the degeneration of the myelin sheaths of nerve fibers, causing sensory and muscle control disorders, that is, it is a condition that attacks the gray matter of the brain and of the spinal cord that causes the appearance of sclerotic plaques that hinder the correct functioning of said nerve fibers.
Cutaneous sclerosis is a benign disease that affects the connective tissue whose particularity is based on the presence of indurated areas of skin, it is a series of small holes that form on the head; The cause of this disease is not yet known, however it has been related to local trauma, viral infections, autoimmune diseases, among others.
Progressive systemic sclerosis is a chronic disease that especially affects the skin, however it can also affect other organs such as the intestine, heart, lungs and kidney; It is characterized by causing a stiffness in the skin due to excess clumps of collagen fibers.
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease or ALS, this condition is degenerative of the neuromuscular type; According to certain sources, it occurs when some cells of the nervous system, called motor neurons, consecutively decrease in their functioning until they die, thus causing progressive muscular paralysis that in certain cases can be predicted as fatal. It was first described by Jean Martin Charcot, a French physician, in 1869.
A campaign that has become very popular in recent days is the "Ice bucket challeng" that seeks to raise awareness about Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and raise funds for people who suffer from this disease and for the ALS Association that is responsible for the fight against it. in the United States; Accordingly, this association exposes it on its main page "alsa.org" to date, thanks to the Ice Bucket Challenge, the amount of $ 23 million in donations has been raised for this cause.
The famous challenge "Ice Bucket Challenge" which literally in our language means " Challenge of the ice bucket ", consists of throwing a bucket of ice water on top of it, a challenge that has been carried out by several celebrities such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Mark Zuckerberg, Selena Gómez, Justin Bieber, Bon Jovi, Bill Gates, Oprah Winfrey, among many others and every day it is increasing.
