Multiple Sclerosis :: Optic Neuritis And IVSM
Referred to ophthalmologist by my neuro to investigate left eye grey vision spots, and weakness. Optho diagnosed optic neuritis (pale optic nerve, extreme light sensitivity, abnormal pupil dilation etc. etc...) and neuro prescribed IVSM 3 days at home. I was found to be allergic to the IVSM, however my post is referring to the worsening of my neuritis.
Since the treatment my eye is now constantly in pain fluctuating from minor to pretty debilitating. I am in sunglasses all day long except with indoors with no windows.... Or lights... Due to light sensitivity. The strangest addition to the neuritis symptoms, however is that as the day progresses (and my eye is used) the whole left side of my head goes numb. Since the MS work up beginning in Feb, I have only have left side facial numbness once for 5 hours. Now, it's daily. It certainly worsens as my eye gets tired... And there are bouts of shooting pain through the whole left side of my head that are very light and sound sensitive.
Is this normal for neuritis? To cause facial and head numbness as well? Or, could this possibly be some weird side effect from the IVSM as it's trying to "calm" my inflammation.
Also, every single day at about noon, for a week, I get this severe anxiety chest compression that makes breathing labored and short. I am aware of the side effects from the IV causing anxiety, as well as MS in general, but this is a trigger less symptoms that's more significant than any anxiety I have felt before? I'm curious if this could be, instead, the MS hug? However, there is no pain with it, just a complete chest compression that lasts about 3 hours.
Optic Neuritis Without A Multiple Sclerosis Diagnosis?
I am a female Caucasian that is 23 years old, 5' 7" and about 155 pounds. I was diagnosed with optic neuritis in early March. I had eye pain upon movement, blurry vision, slight loss of color (Which still remains), and some odd headaches (almost felt like a severe hot flash inside my head). The doctor did not feel it was necessary for me to take the steroid treatment. My vision is recovering, but I don't really expect it to be 100%. I had an MRI of the head and neck and it came out clean with no lesions. My blood tests came back clean as well. I consider myself to be relatively healthy aside from some urinary tract infections and my neurologist said that he doesn't think I will develop MS, but what I have read makes me think differently and I want to be informed. I know that there is no way to pinpoint exactly what my risk of MS is, but I was curious if any other cases like mine have not developed MS?
View 1 RepliesMultiple Sclerosis :: Optic Neuritis - Fear Of Going Blind
I finally saw the MS specialist today, after months of waiting. His opinion was that my symptoms point to MS, but I will be having a plethora of labs drawn and an MRI. The most frightening thing to me was that he is getting me in to an opthamologist asap because it appears that I have optic neuritis in both eyes. I'm not afraid of MS, but I am afraid of going blind. Someone tell me something to make me feel better, please.
View 14 RepliesMultiple Sclerosis :: Optic Neuritis Changed Eye Size
I was recently diagnosed with MS after my first attack of ON. Its been 4 weeks now since the attack and my affected eye looks visibly smaller in size than my unaffected eye. Is this something commonly seen in ON ? I am hoping this is not permanent!
View 3 RepliesMultiple Sclerosis :: Wandering Eye After Optic Nerve Neuritis
Was cross eyed as a child. One surgery on left and 2 on right 57 year old male. Surgery at 6 10 and 20. Had about 5 bouts of optic nerve neuritis about 15 years ago. Both eyes but more serious in rt eye. No MS. MRI every year for 5 every other since. Now my right eye wanders up and out all the time contacts and glasses do not help much. My vision came back fine other than age stuff. I Want to know why my eye wanders up and out and is there anything I can do for it ? Is it from old surgeries? Is it from optic nerve?
View 1 RepliesMultiple Sclerosis :: Nausea - Feels Like Food Is Stuck At The Back Of My Throat
I have been suffering with really bad nausea since yesterday, it feels like food is stuck at the back of my throat. I feel awful. Don't know if it's a bug or not.
View 12 RepliesMultiple Sclerosis :: Optic Nerves Swollen With MS?
The Drs thought I had Pseudotumor Cerebri, since my optic nerves have in swollen since Oct 2013. I had a MRI and Spinal tap. Found out my pressure was too low. But they found oligoclonal bands in my CSF. BUT concluded not enough evidence for MS. I have many symptoms of MS. My leg has been numb and burning in my thigh all day. Has anyone experienced their optic nerves swollen with MS? I'm not talking about inflammation in the nerves just swollen. Worried about going blind and trying to figure out what's wrong. I'm waiting for the Michigan head and pain neurology clinic to set me up with an appt.
View 5 RepliesMultiple Sclerosis :: Thinning Of Optic Nerves
I went to a neuro-ophthalmologist due to some issues with my right eye. Blurry spot. Nothing too crazy, but annoying.
He did Optical coherence tomography (OCT) and vision field test. The vision field test came out fine, but the OCT showed thinning of the optic nerve. He told me he wanted me to be seen for an evaluation of possible MS.
After posting here a earlier this month about whether or not to go see a neuro, I had made an appointment with an MS Specialist. I see him on June 3rd.
Any idea what thinning of the optic nerves can mean?
Multiple Sclerosis :: Thin Optic Nerve
Just back from an eye appt and was told that my (L) optic nerve is thinning and my field vision test was normal.
I have not had any loss of vision or blurriness other than the blurriness that comes with my migraines. Is it possible to have optic neuritis w/o it affecting your vision?
I have to wait until 7/19 to see my neuro, so I am still waiting to be diagnosed, however, the news I was given this morning makes me lean more towards MS.
Optic Neuritis - Eye Sight Getting Worse
I have worn glasses all my life and always been dependant on them. I was having trouble with my vision so decided to have my eyes checked out again, although i only had a sight test nine months ago. It resulted in me requiring stronger glasses and a large increase in both eyes, especially my left eye. I have a difference of 1.75 between my left and right eye.
I was referred onto the eye specialist again for further checks and i was told i have Optic Neuritis, and was told that my eyesight will probably get worse and been advised to return to the opticians in a few months to have them checked out again.
I was prescribed last year additional reading lenses i wear multifocal contact lenses most of the time but wear my glasses at night. I was advised by the opticians that my prescription is pretty strong especially needing additional reading help.
Optic Neuritis - 3 Different Glasses From 3 Optometrists
I had my first bout of Optic Neuritis five years ago in my right eye and from memory I had no vision loss at the time only pain, my MRI was clear and the ON went away without any medication in about six weeks.
I had my second bout of Optic Neuritis that started in August 2012 (that's never gone away) it began very different with severe pain in both eyes then went to my right eye only for around a week then to my left eye (my right eye returned to normal) I completely lost the vision in my left eye and the opthamologist put me on oral steroids and referred me to a Neurologist due to a number of strange symptoms I was experiencing, she was no help as she said I was depressed and wanted to start me on antidepressants she really didn't want to listen so I didn't go back. I had a further two brain MRIs that were also clear and I regained cloudy vision that has only improved slightly now 12 months later I have days that are cloudier than others and have accepted that it will never get better,my opthamologist said I don't need to go back to him unless I feel I need to. My main question is I have recently been to three different optometrists (all from the same place) for new glasses and each time my new glasses came back I couldn't read through them, I don't know if they are getting my prescription wrong or if its my eyes, I contacted my ophthalmologist for advice and he said to try a different optom but Im embarrassed and scared that its just my eyes or Im going crazy, has anyone else had this problem?
Optic Neuritis - Vision Of One Is Darkened
Over the past few days I have been experiencing pain behind the eye which had optic neuritis previously. Tonight as I was reading to my son in a dark room, with a lamp to my left, I noticed that vision from my right eye was normal, while from the left, it was significantly darkened. Maybe this is a question of physics, and how light falls and is perceived. I have also been dealing with headaches over the past week or so. I am at a loss now to know whether the eye pain is to do with the headaches, which may be brought on by the amantadine I started (how long for side effects to show? this would be the first headache side effect after about 3.5 weeks), or if this is optic neuritis again. Anyone here any good with physics and physics of light especially?
View 6 RepliesChiari Malformation :: Optic Neuritis? Blurriness, Flashing Lights, And The Black Letters
I am not diagnosed as of yet. I do know that I have a chiari malformation 1. About 7-8 days ago I started noticing some visual changes in my left eye. I do notice intermittent pain/ pressure to my left eye and forehead. The best way I can describe the visual changes are as an ocular migraine- everything looks really bright, some blurriness, flashing lights, and the black letters on the bright white screen of my phone look a little dull- however these symptoms come and go over the day, they are not constant. I do notice that the symptoms come on with activity, bright lights/colors, heat. I did have a sinus infection 2 weeks ago and continue with the sinus pressure. I saw my eye doctor who completed a dilated eye exam and said all was normal. Has anyone else had these symptoms with optic neuritis? These symptoms are very concerning to me- didn't feel the eye doctor took me very serious.
View 3 RepliesMultiple Sclerosis :: Vitamin D Or MS Or What?
It all started with the feeling of hot water being poured on my right foot. Started out slowly, then became very frequent and has slowly gotten better - now I only feel a sensation of "heat" pressing on my right foot occasionally. The worst of it lasted nearly 8 months. During that time I also had a worsening of many other symptoms such as: fatigue, horrible tremors, dizziness, nausea (from the dizziness), brain fog, chronic headaches/migraines, weakness in my entire right side, thighs that twitch and "pop" when I get warm, severe muscle cramping, vision changes also when I am warm, and urinary frequency problems. I say worsening because I have had some of these symptoms for years and just blew them off. In fact, I had a period of time about 20 years ago when I believe I was having something like the "ms hug" (really sever and unexplained pain in my ribs), as well as a hot feeling on half of my face, and my neurologist at that time said "you probably have some autoimmune disease that will show up later in life". I've had chronic daily headache and migraines for more than 20 years, and an essential tremor for about 10 years that has worsened lately. I also have an unrelated autoimmune disease, which I have been told makes it more likely that I have another (but which one?!). MS was suspected so...
I've been seeing a neurologist (and a PCP and a rheumatologist) for these symptoms for a while now and feel like I've had every test under the sun. I've had a normal cbc, sed rate, hemoglobin, basic metabolic panel, tsh, b12, all kinds of vitamin and mineral levels, folate, lyme test, MRI of brain and lumbar spine, MRI of brain, and an EMG. I have not had a c-spine MRI and wondering if there is a reason it was not included in these tests. So far the only thing that has come back was a positive ANA (which I believe is from my other autoimmune thing) and a low vitamin D (23), which fell from a level of 58 in under a year. I've been supplementing for more than 4 months. My neuro did not think that ALL of my symptoms could be from the D. Some, perhaps, but not all. Why does he think this, I don't know!
I recently finished a taper of prednisone and feel like the "fog" has lifted, like my brain is working again - hooray. My main symptoms now seem to be fatigue (it's insane), urinary problems, and some newer problems with my left foot (not the foot I was originally having problems with) - where it will cramp up for days and days (two and a half weeks one time), just like a never ending cramp. When it's not cramping I get feelings of heat, or sometimes just a vibrating feeling. The cramping can be very painful, the "hot" feelings are just strange. I've also now started having problems with jumping/twitching muscles in my left hand and arm (different than my normal tremor). I continue to have some right-side weakness.
So I'm wondering, do these symptoms sound as though they could all be because of the vitamin d? I've got a month until I see the doctor again, and he has been trying to push some meds on me, but I wouldn't want to start something if it's all because of the D. Since supplementing, I have had some improvements in my cognitive symptoms, but not much else.
Lastly, my neuro said he may send me to an MS specialist for a second opinion if I am still having problems next month... but if my MRIs are all clean, then there surely must be a more likely explanation, right? I just don't know why he is so sure that the low d couldn't be causing everything. He said that it was very unlikely because my levels had previously been ok and the severity of my symptoms would more match someone who had been very deficient for a much longer time. Does that sound logical? Would an MS specialist be able to tell me anything new?
Multiple Sclerosis :: The Possibility Of MS
Hello everyone,
Back in March of this year I ended up heading to the emergency room for this strange numbness feeling that began in my hands and feet and then travelled throughout the rest of my body; it lasted about five or six days and then went away completely. I was in the hospital for four days and while I was there I had a CT, lumbar puncture, and an MRI of my brain, all of which were normal. I ended up with a diagnosis of 'post-viral acroparasthesia' and was told that I would be fine.
However, this numbness came back again a couple weeks later. I went back to the emergency room and they said that it wasn't that out of the ordinary for this happen again but gave me a referral to a neurologist who then ordered three more tests: 1) peripheral nerves, 2) evoked potentials, and 3) an MRI of my spine. I've done the peripheral nerve test and that was normal and I have to wait a bit to go to the other tests. I've also had my blood tested for pretty much everything and it's all been normal.
But throughout all the months that I've been waiting to follow-up with the neuro, the numbness as well as some other strange symptoms keep coming out of nowhere (seemingly) and going away. I get really bad tension headaches, lightheadedness, numbness and tingling, fatigue, frequently urinating (sometimes I wake up four times throughout the night), feel a massive brain fog, and more generally I just feel a great deal of malaise. I usually feel like this for four-five days in a row every couple of weeks and then feel completely fine.
These symptoms are pretty ambiguous but MS is something that I'm pretty worried about. My dad has it and is in the latter stages so the doctor's are considering it a possibility. I've seen quite a few doctors now and they haven't been able really figure this out. The most insightful thing that I have been told is that I could have some type of virus, which sometimes may last for a long period of time, and this might explain why I'm getting sick so frequently. I have just been told that I'm going to have to wait to see the neurologist and have anything neurological ruled out.
Whatever is wrong with me is very frustrating. I'm 22 years old working on my university degree and being sick so frequently has taken a huge tole on my academic performance. Also, financially I'm not doing so great and have been cycling through jobs...I mostly end up quitting or getting fired due to the fact that it's been very hard to work like this; it's really causing me a lot of stress.
Prior to all of this I have been quite healthy. I'm very athletic and go out of my way to eat healthy. I don't drink any alcohol, don't do any drugs, and quit smoking cigarettes back in January.
Anything to suggest? Whatever is happening to me is really messing up my life. I can't afford to be so sick all the time and I feel so desperate to know what's wrong.
Multiple Sclerosis :: Symptoms After 50?
I have noticed some symptoms that I have developed in recent years that I believe to be symptoms of MS. I am 62, female and concerned that I may have the disease. It's affecting my arm, hand and head and I didn't put it together until I went to a yoga class and it just came to me to check out the symptoms. I have been having tremors, spasms, sometimes painful, in my arm for a few years and it's gotten progressively worse. Last year I noticed my head would shake if my arm was in a certain position. I went to an orthopedist and he said it was due to an old cervical fracture so I let it go. I am going to see my primary doctor and ask for their opinion. But I would like to know if I'm too old to develop MS.
View 3 RepliesMultiple Sclerosis :: Gluten Free?
I am mid process during the diagnosis (I've had the MRI with and without contrast and get results Monday. I'm currently refusing LP and have the evoked potentials scheduled). If I were to be diagnosed (still hoping not) I have read a lot about being gluten free and that helping with symptoms. As a matter of fact, I may try it regardless of diagnosis to see if it helps. But, has anyone with MS tried it? Did it help?
View 4 RepliesMultiple Sclerosis :: Why To Have Copper Level?
I was recently referred to a new neurologist. I saw him this past Friday and really liked him. I have had a lot of test run at this point. Including brain MRI which shows what my doctor called one "MS" lesion and one "ischemic" lesion. I am so confused when it comes to lesions. My new neurologist is scheduling a lumbar puncture and will do a MS panel. He also ordered a copper level. Anyone know the reason behind this? I was curious...I don't think I have ever had a copper level done.
View 4 RepliesMultiple Sclerosis :: Reverse Lhermitte's
Just about every time I bend my neck forward I have pain that extends upward to the base of my skull and tingling up my head to envelope mostly the upper left side of my head. I am guessing I am having a relapse. I was unable to see my neurologist as its impossible to get in to see him for months. So a local clinic doctor gave me prednisone. So far it's the only thing helping. I have already been diagnosed with Ms but the only thing I have found is people speaking of Lhermitte's that run down the spine. Do I need a new MRI?
View 14 Replies