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Confusion about diagnosis

Posted: Fri Sep 27, 2013 8:02 am
by Shanberger
I had an MRI of the brain on Wednesday with an MS protocol done (with/without contrast). Just got a voice mail from the neurologist saying that MS is off the table because it was negative. Am I wrong to think that just because you have an MRI of the brain you do not have MS? I still have the tingling and numbness, not so much numbness, but burning sensations in the legs and in the hands so what could be causing that? To be more definitive about not having MS, shouldn't he have done an MRI of the C-spine? Or would doing the MS protocol of the brain be enough information for him to rule out MS? I really want to have faith in what he is saying, because he is supposed to be one of the best neurologist in Houston, but I'm having mixed feelings because of my symptoms. Can you have lesions in the spine with no evidence of lesions in the brain?

Re: Confusion about diagnosis

Posted: Fri Sep 27, 2013 8:46 am
by CaliReader
You can have spinal lesions without brain lesions. But, having said that, MS is not the only possible cause for burning sensations... Some of those causes would be issues with the spine, so if it were me I would want an MRI of the spine to look for stenoses or disk issues as well as MS lesions.

I hope very much you don't have MS.

Re: Confusion about diagnosis

Posted: Fri Sep 27, 2013 9:22 am
by lyndacarol
Shanberger wrote:I had an MRI of the brain on Wednesday with an MS protocol done (with/without contrast). Just got a voice mail from the neurologist saying that MS is off the table because it was negative. Am I wrong to think that just because you have an MRI of the brain you do not have MS? I still have the tingling and numbness, not so much numbness, but burning sensations in the legs and in the hands so what could be causing that? To be more definitive about not having MS, shouldn't he have done an MRI of the C-spine? Or would doing the MS protocol of the brain be enough information for him to rule out MS? I really want to have faith in what he is saying, because he is supposed to be one of the best neurologist in Houston, but I'm having mixed feelings because of my symptoms. Can you have lesions in the spine with no evidence of lesions in the brain?
Upon autopsy, people with no MS symptoms have been found to have lesions. Other people WITH MS symptoms have no lesions on their MRIs; in fact, my first three MRIs were "normal" (my first neurologist declared that I absolutely did not have MS – he was WRONG!) And another TIMS member here had annual MRIs for 14 years before the diagnosis of MS. Yet another TIMS member reported that her MRIs have ALWAYS been free of lesions.

Re: Confusion about diagnosis

Posted: Fri Sep 27, 2013 11:23 am
by Shanberger
Thank you for the advice. After reading so many of these posts, I'm very skeptical now of doctors. Wish I didn't feel that way.