This Is MS Multiple Sclerosis Knowledge & Support Community

Hi, The first thing to do, as Tecfidera is your choice, is to ask for a test for John Cunningham Virus (JCV). If you search for "FDA" and "Tecfidera" you quickly find the FDA notes or go here - https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2016/204063s014lbl.pdf . As part of the prescribing p...

Hi, Firstly, I think you're seeing the right person. The lack of damage that is typical of MS almost certainly rules out that as the reason you have your symptoms. It doesn't mean you haven't got a neurological problem but it doesn't guarantee that your symptoms are caused by nerve damage. It could ...

Hi, I presume your neurologist was involved in the brain surgery?? We all have 12 cranial nerves. All of them are involved in a range of things. The sensory neurons in those nerves are responsible for altered sensations. Those neurons take the information back to various ares of the brain for proces...

Hi Sarah, If you don't have fluctuating blood pressure that's a good thing. The reason I asked was related to your description of "bladder problems". Those issues can have different presentations. For my own benefit, I was checking to preempt scans of the spine. When a patient has damage above T5 (a...

Hi Sarah, The neurologist is basically saying there is not sufficient evidence on the MRI to make an MS diagnosis. You are absolutely right that a lumber puncture can be done. It may show bands of protein that indicate MS or it may not. Your problem is the neurologist is a one trick pony so he has p...

Hi, The lesions don't sound something fresh to me. The brain stem and upper spinal cord will be more informative. Nonetheless, I do think you should push for earlier appointments. I won't list how many things can look like MS. It is a lot. The key thing to focus on is that your symptoms are real and...

Hi, I'm not in the NYC area so can't offer local advice. The MRI of your cervical spine should be more telling than of your brain. It's not possible from your message to tell what the lesions you have mean but compression of the trigeminal nerve is definitely painful. How is your vision? Does it see...

Hi, It's not quite as groundbreaking as it sounds. Loci is a fancy name for genetic markers and coding genes. If you stretched out a string of DNA it would be massively long. So it can squeeze into a small space it winds around proteins called histones. If the histone has the opposite charge to the ...

Hi, I don't think that there is a contraindication if you take both but I'd check the dosing. You can't cut a slice of butter with a sledgehammer. It is depends what you are trying to attack. Famcyclovir for HSV1 and 2 is fine. It will possibly slow EBV but won't stop it. If its just EBV you are dea...

Hi, Famciclovir breaks down into penciclovir in the body. In this form it has a higher intracellular concentration than acyclovir achieves but it doesn’t cause chain termination. Acyclovir and Valacyclovir result in chain termination. It's Chain termination that you want. A woman called Gertrude Eli...

Hi Glenn, I also feel you might be jumping the gun. The simple answer is to take your daughter to a sports medicine doctor. What you've described, so far, sounds like a sensory issue so it make sense to see if a subtle motor issue is involved. You won't find the answer anywhere on the internet. Some...

Hi,

I had that bug many years ago. What you describe reminds me of it. The test is simple.
When you throw up, if it has a lot a bile I'd really do the test.

Regards,

Hi Chris,

Have you been tested for heliobacter Pylori?
Do you think you're more likely to be ill given certain circumstances or is it totally random?
What makes you think vertigo is part of it?
Did it start as something that occassionally happened or is it a sudden massive onslaught?

Regards,

Hi, I'm 62 so I am outside the group you have specifically asked. How you described the frequency and nature of your interactions with doctors did disturb me. The impression I have is you have been given a superficial level of treatment and then been thrown in the "too hard" basket. Whilst many of u...

I used to get massive leg cramps below the knee for a long time. Then I stumbled on something called Periformis syndrome. Essentially, the periformis muscle squeezes the sciatic nerve and the spasm rips down the leg. Lying on your hip or buttock whilst sleeping will trigger it. It took a couple of g...