Fine Twitching: A Year On

[quincy07]

I started feeling very fine twitching almost a year ago. It was very fine and only heppened to my calves/thighs before I went to bed. I didn't feel them at any other time. Recently I realized I could actually see the muscle moving just udner the skin and started noticing them in other parts of my body as well, back, adboman, upper arms, even rarely lips. They are still very fine, never jerking or last for more than a few seconds. But they do have very offten. Whenever I relax, for example, working on a computer, I can feel them here and there. When I am physically active, for example, mowing or playing vigorous badminton games, I don't feel them. I just saw a neurologist and he said my muscle strenght are all OK. He didn't order an EMG.

My questions, if this fine twitching has been going for almost a year, and I don't experience any muscle weakness/wasting, I can still play competetive sports and do all kinds of stuff, can I be sure that I don't have ALS?

Recently, my routine physical exam has got me worried about my heart, kidney, diabetes, and etc, they all turned out to be OK. I mentioned this twitching to my GP, he told me the could be related to ALS. And this got me worried again.

How concerned should I be?

Thanks.

 

[LisaQ.]

Hi Wavequin,
Well, I obviously don't have a crystal ball to say if ANY of us will end up with the dreaded disease sometime in the distant future, but I can certainly reassure you that it doesn't seem to be the root of your current symptoms.

A clean neuro exam and a year into symptoms without any progression or loss of strength is absolutely the most encouraging evidence that this isn't **S.

Since **S is such a rapidly progressive disease, AND, since you are twitching all over without any loss of strength, there is no reason to suspect you have **S.

Did you tell your GP that you saw a neurologist for the twitching? He/she might not have realized this when you mentioned your twitching.

Blessings,
Sue