Functional Neurological Disorder or, rather, Functional Neurological Disorders (FND) are due to the poor functioning of the nervous system. It is a condition in which there is a problem/an alteration with the way in which the brain and the body receive, send and/or process information, signals or messages and does not allow the body to function normally. It is a problem of the “programme” of the brain, not of the “machinarium” (unlike parkinson or multiple sclerosis). Since it is not degenerative and there is no injury to the structure of the brain. This dysfunction of the brain can cause very varied symptoms. People with FND can present movement problems (such as limb weakness, tremor, dystonia or fixed postures, walking disorders, etc.), sensory alterations, cognitive problems or dissociative or non-epileptic crises.
FND is a complex Nervous System disorder, involving physical, biological, emotional and social factors. It is a real and involuntary condition (not invented or imagined), which can cause a lot of disability (in its different forms dynamic, static, invisible and visible disability), and can directly impact people’s quality of life.
Functional neurological disorders are surprisingly very frequent and common, but they are difficult to understand by patients and many health professionals.
FND is a common neurological disorder, with 4 to 12 per 100,000 people affected each year (around the world, in 2022 there were 7,951 billion people worldwide). One in three patients who go to hospitals are diagnosed with FND. FND can occur across the age spectrum, but is more common in adults. Donors are 3 times more likely to be diagnosed with FND than men. But, as age increases, more men are diagnosed with TNF.( In the UK)