Sorry you are going through this uncertainty & been undiagnosed too. Lesions can be from many other diseases too & apparently even just through age (so one neurologist told me). I dont know about specific locations for the lesions but I know that some spots seem to point to certain conditions.
Unfortunately symptoms do come & go with ms & other diseases too which makes it harder to be diagnosed. All symptoms are real as far as I know.
Sorry I cant answer your questions but sending you hugs.
Discussion Topic
Help me please
Posted on 08/04/09, 09:51 pm
I need help and I know that this is a place that I can find it. Some of you know that I've been on this site for quite a while now..off and on. I was diagnosed in 2004 in Texas because of many lesions that showed up on an MRI and symptoms of pain, memory problems, numbness and tingling in legs, balance problems, dizziness,muscle weakness and severe blurry vision that comes and goes(depending on how bad I feel that day). I was diagnosed a month later with fibromyalgia. I moved to Ohio 2 years ago and now after seeing several neurologists and one at the Cleveland clinic was told that I don't have MS that it was stress related. I am so confused because I have so many apparent symptoms. I guess what I want to know is what are the real symptoms? Can you have lesions that are just there for some other reason and are there specific locations where the lesions are supposed to be? Can you just have lesions but no symptoms? What if you only have a few symptoms that come and go? I know that these are a lot of questions but this is a large group so if you have any input because of what you are or have gone through I would really appreciate it! Thanks!
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Reply #1 08/05/09 4:08am
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Reply #2 08/07/09 12:07am
Lesions can be caused by headaches, smoking, high blood pressure and age. MS lesion most common tendancy is to form in the deep white matter of the brain, near the ventricles by the corpus collusseum(sp?)
Some interesting sites:
A site showing MRI's of different brain conditions, including aging:
http://www.med.harvard.edu/AANLIB/...
And this is a good sight explaining what is typical in MS and masny other disease just an overall good site
http://www.radiologyassistant.nl/en/4556dea65db62#p4594f74ccbf19
Good Luck. I think as traumatic as it was to be to be diagnosed with MS, it would be equally as traumatic to be undiagnosed after I had gotten used to the diagnosis. You must be stressed!
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Reply #3 08/07/09 12:41am
I guess what I want to know is what are the real symptoms? Can you have lesions that are just there for some other reason and are there specific locations where the lesions are supposed to be? Can you just have lesions but no symptoms? What if you only have a few symptoms that come and go? I know that these are a lot of questions but this is a large group so if you have any input because of what you are or have gone through I would really appreciate it
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My understanding is there are no "real" symptoms of MS. Everyones MS is like a snowflake individual and unique.
Lesions can be "asymmptomatic". In fact a large majority of them are asymptomatic, especially in the brain. The brain has a highly plastic nature and is able to re route around damaged areas. So a function may be lost temporarily when a lesion forms, the brain re routes around the damage and the function resumes, perhaps a little bit slower because of re routing. You see the brain's plastic nature in people who have head injuries in car accidents and make extraordinary recoveries that no on expected.
&
(p.3) Most T2 lesions develop without clinical symptoms, but most clinical relapses are associated with new lesions on MRI. On average, MS patients will develop 4 or 5 new MRI lesions per year with great variability among individuals:
From- MRI Atlas of MRI Lesions
Sahraian, MA; Radue, E-W
I'm not certain what to say about a few symptoms that come & go. When a nerve has been demylenated during a relapse the body repairs the damage but that nerve is always weaker than it was before and symptoms may flair on it because of heat, stress,illness,& overwork of the nerve.
Another good site for lesion locations and what they do....but keep in mind that no direct correlation has ever been established for brain lesions and their affect because of the plastic nature of the brain...so this sight just list what could be affected at a lesion location...
http://www.friendswithms.com/brain...
Feel free to send a message to me if you have other specific questions.....I have a lot of sights book marked.
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Reply #4 08/08/09 7:05pm
i have diabetes as well as ms, at first my dr thought my lesions were due to complications of the diabetes. ms is very tricky to diagnose because it mimics alot of other diseases. i had a spinal tap done to finally get a diagnosis. whatever tests they preform, i wish you good luck, and i hope they figure it out quickly. dave -
Reply #5 09/12/09 6:08am
Welcome to our little group. I have SPMS , It sounds like we have a lot of the same symptoms. As for ur question, I am not sure if u can have a lesion there for some other reason. That would be a good question to ask the neurologist. I truly wish u luck and if u need some one to chat with please contact me or post on the board. ... Good luck
Kim -
Reply #6 10/15/09 9:56am
Went to the Cleveland clinic in the beginning of my doctor search, was not sent to a neurologist, even though my back was badly twisted, not tests were ordered. I was given xanax and sent home. If you have multiple lesions, and the symptoms you described you have multiple sclerosis. Doctor's like to use the word stress, it makes everything so much easier for them, You know how you feel, they don't , so don't ever fail to believe in yourself. Good luck
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