When winter comes, it usually brings more than just snow. The frigid temperatures coincide with a predictable uptick in colds and influenza. Lately, though, researchers are finding some seasonal patterns in conditions one wouldn’t necessarily expect to be tied to the calendar.

In August, scientists reported new insights into the seasonable variability of multiple sclerosis. They had examined 939 brain scans taken from 44 individuals with multiple sclerosis over a period of three years. The scans used magnetic resonance imaging to measure edema as an indicator of new lesions in the brain. As they reported in Neurology, the researchers discovered that between March and August, the subjects suffered brain lesions at a rate that was, on average, two to three times higher than during the rest of the year. (Click here to continue reading)

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