MS spasms and stiffness
Muscle stiffness and spasms are common MS symptoms, and are often described as 'MS spasticity'.
Muscle spasms or stiffness can affect between 40% and 80% of people with MS at some time. For most people, these are occasional symptoms.
Drugs and therapies (including physiotherapy and occupational therapy) can help you manage these symptoms.
What are MS spasms and stiffness?
Spasticity
Spasticity means there is an increase in 'muscle tone' (resistance or tension in the muscle).
In other words, when the muscle is moved, there is more resistance to this movement than there normally would be. Muscles feel more rigid.
Health professionals sometimes talk about 'spasticity' when describing the muscle stiffness.
Muscle stiffness
Increased tone (resistance in the muscle) can mean muscles are slow to relax, and this can cause stiffness.
Depending on the muscles affected, this stiffness can make it difficult to perform delicate movements with the hands and fingers, or make larger movements difficult, which can affect walking, for example.
Muscle spasms
When affected muscles stretch, spasticity may also cause them to twitch or jerk in an uncontrolled way – a spasm. If muscles twitch or jerk repeatedly, this is known as 'clonus', for example when a foot taps repetitively on the floor.
Some people with MS experience other spasms - sudden involuntary movements that can make the arms or legs move in different ways.
These can occur even without the muscle being stretched.
What do MS spasms look like?
An MS muscle spasm happens when a muscle suddenly and unexpectedly goes tight or shortens. This causes a jerky movement of the part of the body attached to that muscle – for example the arm or leg.
Muscles shorten when they work to move parts of our body, but with a spasm, they shorten very quickly, without control. Muscles spasms with MS can be mild or more severe. They can be annoying and uncomfortable. For some people they’re painful.
Muscle spasms are sometimes described by the way they move the body:
- a flexor spasm makes a limb suddenly bend (for example, at the knee or hip).
- an extensor spasm makes a limb straighten up away from the body.
- an adductor spasm pulls a limb in towards the body (for example, the thighs pulled close together).
If you have a spasm in the back muscles, it might make your back arch.
What causes MS spasms and muscle stiffness?
Muscles are involved in every movement you make. They get longer and shorter to move and hold the body.
If MS causes nerve damage that affects muscle movements, they can cause a range of problems.
Recognising trigger factors
Investigating potential trigger factors that cause or make your MS spasms, muscle twitching or stiffness worse is a vital step in finding solutions. If you know what is causing the problem, then this can help you deal with it.
For example, something as simple as loosening tight clothing might provide some relief.
The following are some of the more common trigger factors that you and your doctor or MS nurse might consider:
- an increase in your body temperature (perhaps because of a fever or too much exercise)
- infections (for example, bladder or chest infections)
- if you are experiencing a relapse
- skin irritation (including pressure sores)
- a full bladder
- constipation, causing a full bowel
- overly tight strapping or clothes
- pain
- a fractured bone (perhaps caused by a fall)
- problems with posture
- emotional stress
The effects of spasticity and spasms
MS spasms and muscle stiffness can range from a minor annoyance to problems that make daily life and activities uncomfortable, painful and difficult.
Extremely strong spasms can jerk the body quite dramatically, causing limbs to move with considerable force, or be held in uncomfortable positions.
MS causing muscle twitching in the night
Spasms sometimes cause particular problems at night. The 'jerking' they can cause to the body – often the legs – might wake you or your partner several times a night.
Not getting a good night's sleep can make living with MS more difficult, possibly making other symptoms worse, such as fatigue and weakness.
MS muscle pain
Both muscle spasms and stiffness can be painful, though they are not always. You might feel the dull ache of stiff muscles, or a sharper pain if they spasm.
Muscle problems can also interfere with good posture, causing back pain, for example. If pain is an issue for you, let your doctor or MS nurse know.
Find out more about managing pain
The positives of MS stiffness
If your leg muscles are weak, for example, a certain amount of stiffness can help keep the legs rigid and stable for walking and standing. If this is the case, it may be better to monitor the situation to prevent further complications, rather than try and remove the stiffness completely.
Treatment for MS spasms and stiffness
It’s early evening, I’m relaxing watching a bit of TV or reading with my feet up. That’s when it starts: my toe, usually my big toe on my left foot, slowly starts to point towards the ceiling. It aches, I push my toe back down, this repeats for an hour or so. Sometimes it leads to a massive leg spasm, sometimes the toes just twitches away for ages.
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Helpful resources
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You can download them from our website or order copies from our online shop.
