ducksoup
Member
- Joined
- Jan 2, 2017
- Messages
- 25
- Reason
- Loved one DX
- Country
- Phl
- State
- NCR
- City
- Manila
Hi everyone,
First of all, I would like to thank those who reply to this post in advance.
I would just like to ask for you help in figuring out if my symptoms are early signs of ALS. About a month ago, I started feeling a sharp, constant pain on my lower back as well as buttocks that was followed by leg cramps on my right leg. This eventually resulted in stiffness in my upper thigh and pain radiating from my thigh to my lower leg. The pain is heightened when I walk and stronger when I sit. I also had a hard time walking due to the numbness a felt in my leg. Note, though, that I can still tip toe, but with some effort. As a result of the numbness, my foot also started to feel really "loose" when I walk. At about the same time, my knees started to feel painful and would sometimes buckle when I stand for a long time. I assumed it was because of the weakness in my right calf as my knees were taking most of the load of my weight from my calf.
While this was happening, I also was starting to experience pain on my arms near my elbows and on my shoulder blades. It's the kind of pain you get after lifting weights at the gym. I also started to feel tingling on my right leg as well as my fingers on both my hands. Finally, I noticed widespread and strong fasiculations on both my right and left leg, my arms, stomach and face. Once I saw my leg jerk strongly while at rest.
Finally, I noticed that I was out of breathe lately. I am not sure if this related in any way to my other symptoms but I am putting this out there in case it's important.
At this point, I should also tell everyone that my mother was diagnosed with ALS last year. She was initially diagnosed with a herniated disc. She was misdiagnosed then was told that she had Parkinsonism. Finally, a third neuro then diagnosed her with ALS. By this time, both my mother's leg had no longer functioned. She had also lost the function of her right arm. She could still speak clearly.
After seeing what my mother had gone through to get an accurate diagnosis, I began to feel a bit anxious about my symptoms. So, I recently consulted my mother's neuro. At the clinic, the doctor did the usual strength test. He noted that he saw no signs of weakness on my legs or arms but did note that my affected leg -- the right -- did not respond when hit by his hammer. He decided to conducted an EMG-NC and MRI.
I am sharing my EMG-NC findings to help you better assess my condition:
The findings are suggestive of an acute bilateral lower lumbar radiculopathy affecting the L5-S1 roots.
However, what is unusual in this case is the increased insertional pattern noted in the higher lumbar paraspinals (up to L1-L2 root innervation) which are not the usual sites for a radiculopathic process. This may be due to increased muscle membrane irritability from toxic-metabolic causes(?), a beginning caude equina syndrome(?). The electrophysiologic criteria for a diffuse motor neuron disease are not fulfilled at this time. Changes consistent with a proximal myopathy are also not see.
The report also noted increased insertional activity in my left C5-6.
On my absent reflexes, he noted that "absent bilateral S1 reflex could be a normal variant or may be due to mild bilateral S1 radiculopathy.
Upon seeing the findings, my doctor ordered an MRI to confirm the report. The MRI findings are as follows:
Lumbosacral spine:
Desiccated disks, L4-L5 and L5-S1
Posterior disk bulge, L5-S1 with thecal sac indentation and annular tear.
Straightened lumbosacral spine.
Cervical spine:
The cervical cord, including the craniocervical junction is intact.
Focal disc bulges are seen C4-C5 and C5-C6 indenting the thecal sac. The spinal canal and exit foramina are not narrowed.
Beginning disc desiccation at C3-C4, C5-C6 and C6-C7 are observed.
The ligamentum flavum and posterior longitudinal ligament are not hypertrophic.
The rest of the intervertebal disc, vertebral bodies, pedicles, laminae, transerverse and spinous processes, atlantoociptal atlantoaxial, uncovertebral and facet joints are unremarkable.
The pre and paraspinal soft tissues are unremarkable.
The cervical lordosis is maintained.
My doctor's findings as of today: a herniated disc was causing the weakness in my leg. As for my arm, he wasn't really sure what was causing it except for that beginning disc dessication noted in my report.
My questions now:
1) Can a herniated disc cause the kind of weakness and loss in balance that I am now experiencing? Can it also explain the extreme pain in my knees? I asked my doctor about this and his answer was a slightly tentative "yes" but he was puzzled by my knees buckling.
2) Can beginning disc dessication cause numbness and that throbbing pain in my arms? So far, I have not noted any weakness in my arms. Nor are my reflexes affected. I can still button my shirt, catch a ball with it. I am concerned though because of a story I read about pain in arm being this person's initial symptom:
Richard Is Living With ALS: Pain In My Left Hand
3) I am puzzled by that last sentence in my EMG-NC which said: the increased insertional pattern noted in the higher lumbar paraspinals (up to L1-L2 root innervation) which are not the usual sites for a radiculopathic process. I asked my doctor what that meant and he mentioned that it was not something to be concerned about. Would like to know if somebody here can shed light on this.
Given my findings and my symptoms, I would like to ask you what you think. My particular concern are my arms as my doctor did not really give a conclusive answer to this problem.
Looking forward to your response. Again, thank you for reading this.
First of all, I would like to thank those who reply to this post in advance.
I would just like to ask for you help in figuring out if my symptoms are early signs of ALS. About a month ago, I started feeling a sharp, constant pain on my lower back as well as buttocks that was followed by leg cramps on my right leg. This eventually resulted in stiffness in my upper thigh and pain radiating from my thigh to my lower leg. The pain is heightened when I walk and stronger when I sit. I also had a hard time walking due to the numbness a felt in my leg. Note, though, that I can still tip toe, but with some effort. As a result of the numbness, my foot also started to feel really "loose" when I walk. At about the same time, my knees started to feel painful and would sometimes buckle when I stand for a long time. I assumed it was because of the weakness in my right calf as my knees were taking most of the load of my weight from my calf.
While this was happening, I also was starting to experience pain on my arms near my elbows and on my shoulder blades. It's the kind of pain you get after lifting weights at the gym. I also started to feel tingling on my right leg as well as my fingers on both my hands. Finally, I noticed widespread and strong fasiculations on both my right and left leg, my arms, stomach and face. Once I saw my leg jerk strongly while at rest.
Finally, I noticed that I was out of breathe lately. I am not sure if this related in any way to my other symptoms but I am putting this out there in case it's important.
At this point, I should also tell everyone that my mother was diagnosed with ALS last year. She was initially diagnosed with a herniated disc. She was misdiagnosed then was told that she had Parkinsonism. Finally, a third neuro then diagnosed her with ALS. By this time, both my mother's leg had no longer functioned. She had also lost the function of her right arm. She could still speak clearly.
After seeing what my mother had gone through to get an accurate diagnosis, I began to feel a bit anxious about my symptoms. So, I recently consulted my mother's neuro. At the clinic, the doctor did the usual strength test. He noted that he saw no signs of weakness on my legs or arms but did note that my affected leg -- the right -- did not respond when hit by his hammer. He decided to conducted an EMG-NC and MRI.
I am sharing my EMG-NC findings to help you better assess my condition:
The findings are suggestive of an acute bilateral lower lumbar radiculopathy affecting the L5-S1 roots.
However, what is unusual in this case is the increased insertional pattern noted in the higher lumbar paraspinals (up to L1-L2 root innervation) which are not the usual sites for a radiculopathic process. This may be due to increased muscle membrane irritability from toxic-metabolic causes(?), a beginning caude equina syndrome(?). The electrophysiologic criteria for a diffuse motor neuron disease are not fulfilled at this time. Changes consistent with a proximal myopathy are also not see.
The report also noted increased insertional activity in my left C5-6.
On my absent reflexes, he noted that "absent bilateral S1 reflex could be a normal variant or may be due to mild bilateral S1 radiculopathy.
Upon seeing the findings, my doctor ordered an MRI to confirm the report. The MRI findings are as follows:
Lumbosacral spine:
Desiccated disks, L4-L5 and L5-S1
Posterior disk bulge, L5-S1 with thecal sac indentation and annular tear.
Straightened lumbosacral spine.
Cervical spine:
The cervical cord, including the craniocervical junction is intact.
Focal disc bulges are seen C4-C5 and C5-C6 indenting the thecal sac. The spinal canal and exit foramina are not narrowed.
Beginning disc desiccation at C3-C4, C5-C6 and C6-C7 are observed.
The ligamentum flavum and posterior longitudinal ligament are not hypertrophic.
The rest of the intervertebal disc, vertebral bodies, pedicles, laminae, transerverse and spinous processes, atlantoociptal atlantoaxial, uncovertebral and facet joints are unremarkable.
The pre and paraspinal soft tissues are unremarkable.
The cervical lordosis is maintained.
My doctor's findings as of today: a herniated disc was causing the weakness in my leg. As for my arm, he wasn't really sure what was causing it except for that beginning disc dessication noted in my report.
My questions now:
1) Can a herniated disc cause the kind of weakness and loss in balance that I am now experiencing? Can it also explain the extreme pain in my knees? I asked my doctor about this and his answer was a slightly tentative "yes" but he was puzzled by my knees buckling.
2) Can beginning disc dessication cause numbness and that throbbing pain in my arms? So far, I have not noted any weakness in my arms. Nor are my reflexes affected. I can still button my shirt, catch a ball with it. I am concerned though because of a story I read about pain in arm being this person's initial symptom:
Richard Is Living With ALS: Pain In My Left Hand
3) I am puzzled by that last sentence in my EMG-NC which said: the increased insertional pattern noted in the higher lumbar paraspinals (up to L1-L2 root innervation) which are not the usual sites for a radiculopathic process. I asked my doctor what that meant and he mentioned that it was not something to be concerned about. Would like to know if somebody here can shed light on this.
Given my findings and my symptoms, I would like to ask you what you think. My particular concern are my arms as my doctor did not really give a conclusive answer to this problem.
Looking forward to your response. Again, thank you for reading this.
