MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic illness involving your central nervous system (CNS) and can potentially disable the brain.
Symptoms can vary among people but most common are fatigue and difficulty walking. Less common symptoms include acute or chronic pain, tremors, cognitive issues, memory, and problem-solving skills and speech orders.
A diagnosis is made through a neurological exam, a clinical history, and a series of diagnostic tests such as MRI Scans, visual evoked potentials tests, spinal taps and blood tests. It’s also important to rule out other conditions that have similar symptoms. It is especially challenging because these methods can lead misdiagnosis which is common in MS cases.
According to a new study, almost one in five multiple sclerosis patients may be misdiagnosed with the autoimmune disease.
From Healthline
"The diagnosis of MS is tricky. Both the symptoms and MRI testing results can look like other conditions, such as stroke, migraines, and vitamin B-12 deficiency."
- Dr. Marwa Kaisey (Neurology Specialist)
A cure for MS has not yet been found but there are treatment options to consider such as Disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) which can slow down progression and lower relapse rate.
STORY
Two months after giving birth to her daughter, she experienced a numb finger which she initially thought of as a trapped nerve from carrying a newborn around.
Julia Marshall-Wessendorf
© SWNS
She then consulted her physician and her MRI test results showed lesions on her brain and spinal cord — leading to a MS diagnosis.
However, when her symptoms worsened, she did some of her own research and discovered she might have Lyme disease.
"In hindsight, I wonder if the diagnosis was too quick - and now I know it is Lyme disease, I wish I had pushed further for more tests."
Mrs. Marshall-Wessendorf requested to be tested for Lyme disease but it came back negative. Another test was taken and sent to a specialist in America.
She asked for antibiotics for the disease and took them prior to getting the results. A month later, the test came back positive but she claims her symptoms had started to disappear within four days of a Lyme disease drug regime.
She believes that she might have been bitten by a tick in Germany, where she’s originally from, a long time ago.
Read the full article here.
Please review medical papers discussing the Multiple Sclerosis and Lyme connection here.