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Advice needed please

Posted: Sat May 02, 2015 3:29 pm
by Aquarius66
Hi I am awaiting a second MRI scan the first I had 13 years ago when I first had these symptoms and it was discussed then possible MS.
13 years ago I woke up with right side of my face tingling and numb including my tongue and inside my mouth this lasted for several months after seeing a neurologist and an MRI scan the cause and diagnosis were never confirmed and I just got on with my life .
Then three weeks ago exactly the same thing happened I woke with tingling in my lip which eventually travelled across my entire right hand side of my fave .
It's been constant ever since but feels worse if I'm having a stressful day or haven't had my afternoon nap.
Which brings me to the other major symptom which is tiredness - I can manage normal daily duties for around 3/4 hours but then I need a lie down and this is every day . Also whether or not this is psychological or not I feel pins and needles in my hands and fingers and arms and sometimes my feet . Also another strange symptom is I feel numb around my anus and vagina yep very strange I know and again is it psychological ??
I have no muscle weakness or anything like that just the numbness attack again after 13 years and extreme tiredness I could happily sleep 12 or more hours a day ... today my numbness escalated around my eye and head but calmed down in the evening after a nap although still constant in my face.
Another major symptom is my forgetfulness o literally cannot remember complete episodes of my life and my short term memory is so bad it's causing problems with my part time job as I completely forget information minutes after being informed and sometimes I really have to concentrate on what I'm doing and it feels like such effort.
Does this sound like possible MS ? My doctor has referred me to an MS specialist but that's a month away ...so I was hoping someone would be able to advise me on what there thoughts are on this.
Main symptoms
1 numbness and tingling right side of face constant
2 extreme fatigue and tiredness
3 fuzzy brain bad memory and difficulty concentrating
4. Getting words jumbled up when speaking and writing

Many thanks

Re: Advice needed please

Posted: Sat May 02, 2015 4:16 pm
by lyndacarol
Aquarius66 wrote:Hi I am awaiting a second MRI scan the first I had 13 years ago when I first had these symptoms and it was discussed then possible MS.
13 years ago I woke up with right side of my face tingling and numb including my tongue and inside my mouth this lasted for several months after seeing a neurologist and an MRI scan the cause and diagnosis were never confirmed and I just got on with my life .
Then three weeks ago exactly the same thing happened I woke with tingling in my lip which eventually travelled across my entire right hand side of my fave .
It's been constant ever since but feels worse if I'm having a stressful day or haven't had my afternoon nap.
Which brings me to the other major symptom which is tiredness - I can manage normal daily duties for around 3/4 hours but then I need a lie down and this is every day . Also whether or not this is psychological or not I feel pins and needles in my hands and fingers and arms and sometimes my feet. Also another strange symptom is I feel numb around my anus and vagina yep very strange I know and again is it psychological ??
I have no muscle weakness or anything like that just the numbness attack again after 13 years and extreme tiredness I could happily sleep 12 or more hours a day ... today my numbness escalated around my eye and head but calmed down in the evening after a nap although still constant in my face.
Another major symptom is my forgetfulness o literally cannot remember complete episodes of my life and my short term memory is so bad it's causing problems with my part time job as I completely forget information minutes after being informed and sometimes I really have to concentrate on what I'm doing and it feels like such effort.
Does this sound like possible MS ? My doctor has referred me to an MS specialist but that's a month away ...so I was hoping someone would be able to advise me on what there thoughts are on this.
Main symptoms
1 numbness and tingling right side of face constant
2 extreme fatigue and tiredness
3 fuzzy brain bad memory and difficulty concentrating
4. Getting words jumbled up when speaking and writing
Hi and welcome to ThisIsMS, Aquarius66.

"Pins and needles"/tingling in hands/fingers/arms and feet is the textbook definition of "peripheral neuropathy." This is a common symptom in many conditions, which need to be ruled out first before the MS diagnosis is considered. MS is a diagnosis of exclusion. In investigating the cause of peripheral neuropathy, the University of Chicago suggests the following:

http://peripheralneuropathycenter.uchic ... #bloodtest\
Blood tests

Blood tests are commonly employed to check for vitamin deficiencies, toxic elements and evidence of an abnormal immune response.

Depending on your individual situation, your doctor may request certain laboratory tests to identify potentially treatable causes for neuropathy. These include tests for:

Vitamin B12 and folate levels
Thyroid, liver and kidney functions
Vasculitis evaluation
Oral glucose tolerance test
Antibodies to nerve components (e.g., anti-MAG antibody)
Antibodies related to celiac disease
Lyme disease
HIV/AIDS
Hepatitis C and B
See your GP (or even the MS specialist you have been referred to) and discuss a written list/timeline of all the symptoms you can recall. Create a game plan and start the investigation with screening for a possible vitamin B12 deficiency (The outdated and inaccurate "serum B12" alone is not adequate to discover a deficiency. The newer, more reliable HoloTc test is preferred by many experts, but is not available everywhere. It is useful to have the serum folate test, the homocysteine test, and the methylmalonic acid test as well.

Re: Advice needed please

Posted: Mon May 04, 2015 9:37 am
by LiseN
Sounds exactly like me--exactly. I was diagnosed "probable MS" in '98, and over the past several months, noticed many small but annoying and weird symptoms--numbness in legs and hands, trouble speaking, fatigue, foggy brain. Had more MRIs and MS confirmed. Started Tecfidera, but am now stopping it as everything is ten times worse since I took it. Best of luck! Lise