Do I have ALS

[molly1love]

Hi all. I have posted here previously. Having had my last EMG/NCV in Dec 2013. Clean except for ? Of mild ridiculopathy. I swore I would move on. However I continue with a feeling of weakness in left foot becoming worse I can still walk on my tippy toes and heels for now. But my neurologist said a few visits back that a negative Babinkski was a pretty reliable sign of no ALS. And I tested my self intermittently due to this feeling in foot and leg. It seems to have changed big toe stays still no upward movement but the other toes at times flex and other times spread apart a bit. So now I am returning for another check of myself to my neurologist at Weill Cornell in NYC as I fear this is a positive babinski and with my leg and foot feeling weaker I'm nervous
Would I have a clean EMG/NCV 3 months ago and now have ALS. Thank you all so much

 

[Nikki J]

You can not do a valid Babinski on yourself
Follow up with your neuro but an EMG is supposed to detect ALS before you have symptoms so if you had an EMG 3 months ago when you had symptoms think you should relax and stop self testing. Wait and see what the neuro says.

 

[Kosmoskatten]

If you perform tests on yourself, especially when stressed, anything can happen. Anxiety is powerful.

And you can't perform Babinsky, Hoffman or any other marker on yourself. I would not recommend doing it if you are not a trained medical professional either.

 

[molly1love]

Thanks for your replies. I will follow up with neuro but he's kind of sick of me and my fear. I guess it's very hard to have these symptons and no one can figure out what causes them. I'm a pediatric nurse. So I'm in the medical field and very frustrated with them. I have read that EMG should show changes before symptons in one area and then read that people diagnosed with ALS have clean tests for months then get diagnosed so its very confusing. Thanks again for your time I really appreciate your responses

 

[Kosmoskatten]

I think these questions are best discussed with your neuro.

EMG's only pick up on LMN issues, so it is possible for a person with only UMN signs to have a clean EMG. I do not want to dig too deep into the "clean EMG and then it was ALS", since I am no doctor.

 

[Nikki J]

Molly assuming that the neuro says no ALS again I think you might consider you are essentially asking the wrong question. If you go to an ALS specialist and say I have x y z symptoms and I think it is ALS then they say no it isn't. It may be time to return either to your pcp or a more general neuro and say I have x y z what is wrong with me? Sometimes it seems like people here are trying to put a square peg in a round hole. It does not work and everyone gets frustrated.

 

[bluedog]

Does your EMG report say normal even though a radiculopathy was found?

What are the findings on the report that indicate radiculopathy?

Do you have a radiculopathy?

Did the radiculopathy appear in the other EMGs?

 

[molly1love]

Essentially normal study there is no electro physiologic evidence for a motor neuropathy a mild chronic S1 radiculopathy on left cannot be entirely excluded overall no signicant change compared to last exam except for subtle findings consistent with mild s1 radiculopathy

Only change was mildly prolonged left soleus H- reflexes relative right and of lower amplitude a change from prior prior study. So my neuro said absolutely no ALS. That was 12/10/13

 

[Mediasmart]

How do u feel?

 

[FSHolbrook]

Why in the world would you have an EMG before you had symptoms ? I did not know anything about ALS until I was diagnosed and that was not until I symptoms that I could not explain. My GP did not know what to make of the symptoms except to refer me to a neurologist.

Rick

 

[Kosmoskatten]

Radiculopathy can be due to many things, have your neuro informed you about this, what the cause can be? I do not know what testing has been done, but maybe it could be worth discussing a lumbar MRI with your neurologist, if he finds that necessary.

I am just a med student, but the H-reflex being prolonged might be, among other things, indicative of lumbosacral radiculopathy, from what I have been taught. And pressure on the lumbosacral nerve root due to a herniated disc or contusios of the sciatic nerve can result in pain and/or weakness of the foot.

I hope you get some answers. I really think you should look away from ALS at this point though.

 

[Mediasmart]

Was
I am just a med student.......

I was once a medical student as well and my instructors would cut my eyes out if I offering up that opinion.

 

[Kosmoskatten]

I am merely offering what I have been taught or what I have read. I am not acting as if I am a professional, because I am not.

I might sometimes be a bit eager in my willingness to help out, but I hope I am clear in that I am just conveying information, nothing more, nothing less. I hope that it does not offend anyone.

 

[molly1love]

No offense taken thanks. I didn't have EMG done before symptons. My symptons are worse than they were when I had EMG. I've had 3 EMGs since November 2/13 by same neuro

 

[Dusty7]

Kosmo, I didn't see anything wrong in the advice you offered. I think it is clear you are not offering professional advice, but are just eager to share your knowledge. Lord knows I do the same thing and if we can't, then let's shut down the site.