Question about MS vs. ALS

[Ivy]

Hi there.

One quick question. For the last few monts of having these twiches & jerks etc I was more worried that these were symptoms of MS rather than ALS. I was generally surprised when I discovered that most of peoples fears on this forum were centered around ALS as opposed to MS. Why is this so? From what I can gather some people experience slight numbness & pains in hands & feet etc which I do (sometimes) and thats why i was more worried about MS.

fyi. I'm not scared or too worried anymore about either (just get on with living ) ) but i am curious to know why people seem to er weight heavily on the ALS side of things vs MS.

Regards
Steve

 

[totaltwirls]

ooopsie.. thats me posting by the way.. wasnt logged in.

 

[totaltwirls]

Twitching/fasciculations is not a symptom of MS. I confirmed that with my neuro. MS is generally having numbness that won't go away or severe changes in vision. I worried about MS when I was having numbness during my heaviest time of anxiety. MRI ruled that out. My sister-in-law has MS and she had severe numbness in her feet as if she was stuck with novacane and it did not go away. They diagnosed her right away with a CT scan.

I think most of us worry(ied) about ALS because it was about the twitching and fasciculations and when you google, you find a tremendous amount of information (some not so accurate). This is what sent us looking for the answers to questions and seeing neuros, etc. From there, we were able to find out all the truth behind it and other diseases that we worried about.

 

[BandersnatchF]

One very important fact I forgot to include in my last post was that twitching without clinical weakness is not indicative of ALS, as it usually starts with severe weakness in a Limb or in the mouth (tongue). If you search other posts you will definitely fine some good info with respect to this information.

 

[Ivy]

In addition to Sharon's good points, there's another important reason for me (and I suspect others): MS can be managed and is typically not rapidly fatal. I have two brothers with MS, both of whom have had it for several years (one for over 15 years - he had his first attack before age 20), and you wouldn't know it unless they told you. They're both on medication for MS, but their lives are otherwise minimally affected. In fact, the brother who got it before 20 wasn't even diagnosed at his initial attack.

While I don't want to have MS (and don't think I have it), it's not as final as ALS. Besides, as Sharon said, twitching isn't a common symptom of MS, though perhaps other forms of muscle jerks might be. For me, MS is actually significantly more likely than ALS because of the familial connection - your chances of having MS if your sibling has it are about 3%. That's much much higher than the 1.5 in 100,000 (max - lower if you're younger!) chance of contracting ALS in a given year.

 

[totaltwirls]

I see. I have been having these symptoms since May. But with no obvious signs of weakness just **constant** jerks & muscle twitching. I feel fine when doing stuff but the fear could give you a whole load of other symptoms in it self.

So. Should I tell my doctor about BFS or wait for him to diagnose me? (Ive been to one Neuro (no scan) & one doctor several times before my current doc) i have moved away from the city now you see. I have used ventolin heavly in the past & would be considered a scatty & stressed & giddy person.