This Is MS Multiple Sclerosis Knowledge & Support Community

Hi all! My name's Michelle and I'm a 22 year old girl from Montreal. Not that it's relevant, but some background is that I'm a type 1 diabetic and have hashimoto's thyroiditis, which are both under control. I've had an undiagnosed illness for almost three years now that began with extreme fatigue. My muscles have now deteriorated and I am seeing a geneticist who suspects it may be mitochondrial disease. There are a whole slew of symptoms which I won't get into right now, but a couple of weeks ago my left side went numb and tingly and I ended up in the ER. We've wondered about MS for a while now, but I finally got a CT and an MRI. The tingling and numbness went away (the tingling comes back on and off) and the CT and MRI came back clean. My question is: Would an MRI with contrast have showed more? Is there any possibility of it still being MS, or is it completely ruled out now? Thank you for your wisdom!

canadiangirl10 wrote:Hi all! My name's Michelle and I'm a 22 year old girl from Montreal. Not that it's relevant, but some background is that I'm a type 1 diabetic and have hashimoto's thyroiditis, which are both under control. I've had an undiagnosed illness for almost three years now that began with extreme fatigue. My muscles have now deteriorated and I am seeing a geneticist who suspects it may be mitochondrial disease. There are a whole slew of symptoms which I won't get into right now, but a couple of weeks ago my left side went numb and tingly and I ended up in the ER. We've wondered about MS for a while now, but I finally got a CT and an MRI. The tingling and numbness went away (the tingling comes back on and off) and the CT and MRI came back clean. My question is: Would an MRI with contrast have showed more? Is there any possibility of it still being MS, or is it completely ruled out now? Thank you for your wisdom!

Welcome to ThisIsMS, Michelle (canadiangirl10).

In my experience, I had numerous MRIs (with contrast) come back "normal" and still eventually (after two years) received a diagnosis of MS as the explanation for my symptoms.

MS is a diagnosis of exclusion. There is no definitive test or symptom which rules MS in or out. MS is considered only after other more likely possibilities have been ruled out.

The symptoms manifested in MS are nonspecific and are common to many conditions.

lyndacarol wrote:

canadiangirl10 wrote:Hi all! My name's Michelle and I'm a 22 year old girl from Montreal. Not that it's relevant, but some background is that I'm a type 1 diabetic and have hashimoto's thyroiditis, which are both under control. I've had an undiagnosed illness for almost three years now that began with extreme fatigue. My muscles have now deteriorated and I am seeing a geneticist who suspects it may be mitochondrial disease. There are a whole slew of symptoms which I won't get into right now, but a couple of weeks ago my left side went numb and tingly and I ended up in the ER. We've wondered about MS for a while now, but I finally got a CT and an MRI. The tingling and numbness went away (the tingling comes back on and off) and the CT and MRI came back clean. My question is: Would an MRI with contrast have showed more? Is there any possibility of it still being MS, or is it completely ruled out now? Thank you for your wisdom!

Welcome to ThisIsMS, Michelle (canadiangirl10).

In my experience, I had numerous MRIs (with contrast) come back "normal" and still eventually (after two years) received a diagnosis of MS as the explanation for my symptoms.

MS is a diagnosis of exclusion. There is no definitive test or symptom which rules MS in or out. MS is considered only after other more likely possibilities have been ruled out.

The symptoms manifested in MS are nonspecific and are common to many conditions.

I should also mention that when I originally started having the episodes of numbness, I did see a neurologist. He said that he did not suspect MS because normally in MS these episodes would last longer, like a week or a month, not intermittently like mine. I am only wondering because we are at a loss at this point. I've had many, many things ruled out and my condition seems to be very slowly progressing. Unfortunately my symptoms are generally very nonspecific which is why I've had a hard time getting straight answers. Luckily within the next 6 months I'll be seeing an amazing neuro muscular specialists so hopefully he'll have some answers for me.

canadiangirl10 wrote:I should also mention that when I originally started having the episodes of numbness, I did see a neurologist. He said that he did not suspect MS because normally in MS these episodes would last longer, like a week or a month, not intermittently like mine. I am only wondering because we are at a loss at this point. I've had many, many things ruled out and my condition seems to be very slowly progressing. Unfortunately my symptoms are generally very nonspecific which is why I've had a hard time getting straight answers. Luckily within the next 6 months I'll be seeing an amazing neuro muscular specialists so hopefully he'll have some answers for me.

I disagree with the neurologist's observation – in my own personal experience, numbness appeared in a finger or two for as little as an hour and then disappeared; at first, my feet and legs would go numb for a couple hours one day and not do it again for a week.

Your descriptions of "episodes of numbness" are not detailed, but if it involves the extremities… Numbness/tingling in the legs and arms is the textbook definition of "peripheral neuropathy." This is a common symptom in many conditions. You "have had many, many things ruled out" – possibly by the same testing suggested by the University of Chicago in investigating the cause of peripheral neuropathy (if not, this may be a topic of discussion with your new neuromuscular specialist):

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

Perhaps these possibilities have already been investigated by the neurologist you saw when numbness started. If not…

Starting with the first entry… Rather than the outdated, inaccurate "serum B12," I hope the newer, more reliable HoloTc is an option for you (This is not yet available everywhere.). If the "serum B12" test must be used, the results should be confirmed by a serum homocysteine test and a serum (or urinary, which is less expensive considered to be more accurate) methylmalonic acid test.(By the way, get your own copies of any test results – it is important to have the actual numbers.)

..... It is incredible how wrong some doctors, and even neurologists can be about MS.

MS can manifest in any and every single way possible.