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Can Dizziness, Nausea, Shooting Pain In Neck And Headache Be Signs Of Multiple Sclerosis?

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Posted on Wed, 5 Feb 2014
Question: Could this be MS? Hi there, I'm a 24 year old female who has been experiencing the following symptoms in waves of weeks to months over the past five years. My GP refuses to take me seriously, saying I'm "too young" to have anything wrong with me. Inner ear issues and celiac have been ruled out via testing, I doubt fribromyalgia because I don't have the trigger points nor is the pain quite as it's usually described, and thus I'm at a loss! I hoenstly just want something to go on until I see a neurologist in 4 months (grr!), for example if it sounds like MS, suggestions for supplements or some encouragement/support.. this is taking over my life. -Dizziness (non-vertigo) that lasts for several weeks to over a month, accompanied by constant nausea (occasional vomiting) -Nausea begins as soon as I wake up, no triggers -Extreme fatigue, no matter how well I rest. Try hard to do normal activities but physically difficult (not mentally, very happy!) -Leg and arm weakness; legs will sometimes bow when walking -Increasingly difficult to write, handwriting sloppier as harder to keep pen down hard enough -Sharp, shooting pains down neck and arms (mainly left), into chest and back -Posture is worsening from trying to be comfortable -“skin” pain, where skin feels as if I’ve been “beaten” and hurts to touch for days at a time -Tingling in fingers and under skin, like prickling or water -Stiff neck, muscle spasms throughout body. Twitches! (fling pens, leg jerks, more frequent now) -Poor circulation, feel cold very easily and often, even in summer. Hands and feet especially -Short term memory is decreasing noticeably as well, and feel cognitively “foggy” quite often, hard to think/make decisions/register what people are saying -Eyesight has noticeably depleted, now require glasses  -One of the most distressing, newer symptoms is the stress incontinence! -Severe cases in summer ’12 and’13 -Not impacted but what/when/if I eat at all: not really exacerbated by exercise, just fatigued from the get-go -Gets worse when it’s really hot, or really cold. Especially humidity and frigid temps -All come in waves, worsening each time for past 5 years. In between, fatigue and weakness constant and pains/spasms/tremor at times (increasing). Feel relatively good between “relapses”, but weakness makes it very difficult to do my job. -Little to no stress/anxiety aside from normal everyday (work, etc). Overall very happy and no major stressors or history of such. Far from depressed -Had migraines from early teens, now get almost daily headaches (managed with Advil). Migraines about monthly. They’ve become so severe and I wake up with them (can’t catch them), I wind up in the ER for treatment -Inner-ear ruled out -Very healthy diet, used to exercise regularly before it became too difficult -CTs in ’10 & ’11 (non-contrast) came back fine, and only blood work abnormalities are mild anemia
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Answered by Dr. Sudhir Kumar (4 hours later)
Brief Answer: My reply is below. Detailed Answer: Hi, Thank you for posting your query. I have noted your detailed complaint list, and I can understand your discomfort on account of all these symptoms. The problem is compounded by the fact that your GP is refusing to take you seriously. You deserve a detailed evaluation by a neurologist to determine the underlying cause of your symptoms and start a treatment. Yes, your symptoms could be due to multiple sclerosis. Fibromyalgia alone can not explain all your symptoms, so, I agree with you that it may not be the diagnosis in your case. CT scan may not show the lesions in MS, so, ideally we need to do an MRI scan of brain and spine to confirm or exclude a diagnosis of MS. As of now, you can avoid extreme temperatures, especially warm climates. You should also avoid stress and take adequate rest. Vitamin D and B12 supplements would be useful for you. I hope my answer helps. Please get back if you have any follow up queries or if you require any additional information. Wishing you good health, Dr Sudhir Kumar MD (Internal Medicine), DM (Neurology) XXXXXXX Consultant Neurologist Apollo Hospitals, Hyderabad, India Click on this link to ask me a DIRECT QUERY: http://bit.ly/Dr-Sudhir-kumar My BLOG: http://bestneurodoctor.blogspot.in
Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
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Dr. Sudhir Kumar

Neurologist

Practicing since :1994

Answered : 6232 Questions

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Can Dizziness, Nausea, Shooting Pain In Neck And Headache Be Signs Of Multiple Sclerosis?

Brief Answer: My reply is below. Detailed Answer: Hi, Thank you for posting your query. I have noted your detailed complaint list, and I can understand your discomfort on account of all these symptoms. The problem is compounded by the fact that your GP is refusing to take you seriously. You deserve a detailed evaluation by a neurologist to determine the underlying cause of your symptoms and start a treatment. Yes, your symptoms could be due to multiple sclerosis. Fibromyalgia alone can not explain all your symptoms, so, I agree with you that it may not be the diagnosis in your case. CT scan may not show the lesions in MS, so, ideally we need to do an MRI scan of brain and spine to confirm or exclude a diagnosis of MS. As of now, you can avoid extreme temperatures, especially warm climates. You should also avoid stress and take adequate rest. Vitamin D and B12 supplements would be useful for you. I hope my answer helps. Please get back if you have any follow up queries or if you require any additional information. Wishing you good health, Dr Sudhir Kumar MD (Internal Medicine), DM (Neurology) XXXXXXX Consultant Neurologist Apollo Hospitals, Hyderabad, India Click on this link to ask me a DIRECT QUERY: http://bit.ly/Dr-Sudhir-kumar My BLOG: http://bestneurodoctor.blogspot.in