Mom passed 30 yrs ago ALS

[Frosty123]

I was diagnosed last summer with MS. I am 56. Is there a connection between these two diseases? I never had an EMG during the process toward MS diagnosis. I did have Multiple MRI's spine and head showing many lesions, lumbar puncture positive for shedding myelin, some weakness in limbs and pretty severe fatigue. Believe I was grateful to be diagnosed with ms vs als. However as the months have passed and my weakness is now in my arms I wonder...should I have had an EMG?

Thoughts, opinions?

 

[Nikki J]

Arm weakness occurs in MS. Whether you need to have further testing is definitely something to discuss with your neurologist. While MS is a distinctly different disease there was study in England that looked at people who had MS and subsequently developed ALS. Perhaps unsurprisingly those who developed the ALS were found to have ( most if not all I can't recall) a genetic defect known to cause ALS where those who did not get ALS did not have the defect. But there was no proof that there was a connection between the MS and ALS and I always wondered if those people were just extraordinarily unlucky

 

[Atsugi]

Frosty, I think you have MS. I see no reason to believe you have changed to ALS.

Focus on enjoying each day, not on disease processes.