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Great Details
Mandy Crest
Friday, April 03, 2009 at 11:30 PMre: Great Details
Lisa Emrich
Sunday, April 05, 2009 at 11:17 PMThank you for the kudos Mandy. I hope that this information will be helpful to the many folks who are in the diagnosis process or who wonder just how it gets done.
My final diagnosis (5 years post- case of Optic Neuritis "without evidence of demyelination") involved:
* Discussing symptoms with PCP in May and then increased symptoms in June
* MRI of cervical spine w/o constrast ordered by PCP in June
* Referred to neurologist by PCP in June (the day after my MRI)
* Extensive bloodwork ordered by neurologist in July (first available neuro)
* MRIs of brain and cervical spine w/ and w/o contrast in July
* Evoked Potential Tests (visual, somatosensory, brainstem auditory) in July
* Lumbar Puncture in August (after which I underwent 5-days Solumedrol)
* Repeat MRIs of brain and cervical spine w/ and w/o contrast in late September
* Official diagnosis in October
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DX MS?
Diane J Standiford
Sunday, April 05, 2009 at 10:21 PMLisa, your site and blog are wonderful places for anyone with, or wondering if they have, MS. I have no doubt you have helped hundreds of people with expert facts and true stories. I was DX in minutes, then again w/MRI within a week. I was one of the "lucky" ones.
re: DX MS?
Lisa Emrich
Sunday, April 05, 2009 at 11:22 PMThank you so much for your kind words Diane. They really do mean a great deal to me. I hope that many current and possible MS patients find useful information at either location.
Wow, you were diagnosed so quickly. It amazes me when folks are able to obtain a diagnosis in under a month. That just seems almost unreal as compared to my own experience. But we each have a unique experience. Glad that you were one of the "lucky ones."
Hope things are going well for you and yours. Have a great week.
re: re: DX MS?
Diane J Standiford
Sunday, April 05, 2009 at 11:35 PMI have never known in real life anyone who took more than an MRI to get a DX, very fast. I've certainly read about many.
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I'm completely exhausted after reading this post and flashing back on my own quest for answers. It's hard to believe that so much is involved in the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis. Is it any wonder that so many of us suffer emotional problems while looking for a diagnosis?
This is one of the best guides I've seen explaining the process and what is to be expected. It would have been very helpful to me six years ago, when I was caught up in a swirl of strange tests and little information to explain what I was experiencing or what doctors were looking for.
This article is a must read for anyone suspecting MS, as well as the people who love them.