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Getting Numbness On Face And Head. MRI Showed Abnormal Signal Within The Pons. Could It Be One Lesion Unchanged?

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Posted on Tue, 22 Oct 2013
Question: Hi, about 4 years ago i started getting numbness on the left side of my face and head. By accident on an mri they found an abnormal signal within the pons. The mri said to rule out demyelinating disease or small vessels. I could not get an mri with contrast due to allergies so instead I went for mri's every three months without. Eventually this spot disappeared and I was released from neurology. A couple of months ago my XXXXXXX came up positive one was 140 with a nucleolar pattern and then 180 with a nucleolar pattern. so i was sent to a rheumotologist. She said that she did not think it was auto immune however, it was fibro but she then expressed her concerns because of my left side numbness on side face, head, and leg which just came back. she said I am showing signs for ms. She told me to go to a neurologist. I said that is weird because years before I was being checked for ms. I did another mri and the abnormal signal in the pons was back (one lesion?) it shows that it is unchanged but I am experiencing ms symptoms. The neurologist want me to do a spinal. Could it be ms with one lesion unchanged? could it be lye disease. When checked for lyme disease I tested negative in the past exce? Is their any significance there? Please answer all questions I need a direction!

Please read I got cut off tested negative for lyme disease except for igg band #41? any significance there?
XXXXXXX
doctor
Answered by Dr. Sudhir Kumar (34 minutes later)
Brief Answer:
MS is unlikely

Detailed Answer:
Hi,

Thank you for posting your query.

Based on your details, MS can be considered as a diagnostic possibility; however, if there is a single lesion on MRI, then, MS is unlikely. As per definition, one should have multiple lesions on MRI to qualify as a case of MS.
At this moment, I would do MRI of brain and spine, evoked potential studies and spinal tap (with oligoclonal bands) to be 100% sure that you have or do not have MS.

Also, these symptoms are not likely to be Lyme's disease either.

On the other hand, I would give importance to positive XXXXXXX titers, and before saying you do not have autoimmune disease, I would have urged the rheumatologist to run other antibody tests, including anti ds DNA, etc.

I hope it helps.

Please get back if you require any additional information.

Best wishes,

Dr Sudhir Kumar MD (Internal Medicine), DM (Neurology) XXXXXXX Consultant Neurologist
Apollo Hospitals, Hyderabad,
My personal URL on this website: http://bit.ly/Dr-Sudhir-kumar
My blog: http://bestneurodoctor.blogspot.com/




Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
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Answered by
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Dr. Sudhir Kumar

Neurologist

Practicing since :1994

Answered : 6232 Questions

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Getting Numbness On Face And Head. MRI Showed Abnormal Signal Within The Pons. Could It Be One Lesion Unchanged?

Brief Answer:
MS is unlikely

Detailed Answer:
Hi,

Thank you for posting your query.

Based on your details, MS can be considered as a diagnostic possibility; however, if there is a single lesion on MRI, then, MS is unlikely. As per definition, one should have multiple lesions on MRI to qualify as a case of MS.
At this moment, I would do MRI of brain and spine, evoked potential studies and spinal tap (with oligoclonal bands) to be 100% sure that you have or do not have MS.

Also, these symptoms are not likely to be Lyme's disease either.

On the other hand, I would give importance to positive XXXXXXX titers, and before saying you do not have autoimmune disease, I would have urged the rheumatologist to run other antibody tests, including anti ds DNA, etc.

I hope it helps.

Please get back if you require any additional information.

Best wishes,

Dr Sudhir Kumar MD (Internal Medicine), DM (Neurology) XXXXXXX Consultant Neurologist
Apollo Hospitals, Hyderabad,
My personal URL on this website: http://bit.ly/Dr-Sudhir-kumar
My blog: http://bestneurodoctor.blogspot.com/