DoctorR2D2
Member
- Joined
- Feb 19, 2019
- Messages
- 15
- Reason
- Learn about ALS
- Diagnosis
- 00/0000
- Country
- MX
- State
- MX
- City
- Mexico City
Hi! First of all I'd like to thank you all for accepting me, and also I'd like to acknowledge all of you as true warriors. Helping others while you're getting through all the stuff you have to live, is truly remarkable. May God bless all of you.
I hope you could help me out.
I'm a 25 y.o. male dental surgeon from Mexico. About 2 months ago I had some health issues that turned out to be a pretty big herniated disk in my lumbar spine (Specifically on L5-S1 vertebrae). Because of the size, I was adviced by my surgeon to get surgery. All good, no problems. "Just get lots of rest until surgery and everything will come up nice" I belived it since I GOT NO PAIN INVOLVED.
So I did it. Also I got an EMG about a month ago, requested by my surgeon as a routine.
The EMG said "Abnormal EMG that indicates left S1 radiculopathy"
*Note: I'll provide you the study below, I translated since it's in spanish (N = Normal; the "+" I don't know what it stands for but I was told it wasn't normal)
**Note: You'll notice the Dr left a blank space in the "nerve conduction" on the anterior tibialis muscle, that concerns me! (He couldn't pick my motor nerve conduction, did it died?)
**NOTE: The study was NOT done by a neuro or neurophysiologist, but by a physiatrist (specialist in physical and rehabilitation medicine)
At this point you all should be thinking: "this is a waste of time, what does it have to do with ALS?!"
But wait. This was only to give some background
About 3 weeks I experienced fasciculations on my left shoulder, wich was very, very unusual. At first I thought it was nothing. Then I started to experience increasing fasciculations on my left thigh (the supposedly affected one), left calf, BUT ALSO on the right tight and calf, both upper limbs and also on the back (although not as persistent and numerous as in the lower limbs). It doesn't stop!
They've began to feel a whole lot more and in greater numbers, but also I got pretty fine fasciculations that can only be visible if I or a relative stare at it with detail, cause I don't feel them, or I don't feel them quite as notoriously as the big ones (This scares me A LOT, since I've read from patients experience that they suffered from very fine twitches) Also about a week or so my right (supposedly "good one") began to feel so so weak, I knew that the "bad one" was a little bit weak, even my surgeon said it to me (he performed neuro examination on my legs and feet when he discovered the slipped disk, I wasn't even aware of suck weakness in contrast to the opposing limb), but my other one also? It feels so weak and there's a feeling that something ain't right. I feel like I'm about to lost balance and it happens quite often. When I get on my knees, my thighs feel so weak they start to tremble. Ironically my "good leg" is now much weaker than the one with the radiculopathy, when I got down the stairs it feels so weak, that it's about to give up and I'm gonna fall. My right hand also feels so so weak and clumsy.
Also: I don't have any tongue fasc. but I do notice that my voice isn't quite as normal. I feel so quiet and also like hoarsiness( I have to clear up my voice A LOT) And a very strange symptom: my left masseter muscle feels so stiff, it doesn't fasciculate but it's increadibly akward and it has began to bother me while eating.
As a healthcare profesional I'm aware of some ALS symptoms, so the persistent fasciculations (specially the fine ones) + weakness + voice issues = SCARED TO DEATH
My surgery is next week, and I got an anxiety attack after reading a case report of a patient that had an herniated disk but ALSO UNDIAGNOSED ALS!!!, so he went under surgery, and the surgery and anesthesia (the doctors in the article think) made the ALS progress unexpectedly fast!!! The article was even made TO CREATE AWARENESS THAT HERNIATED DISKS AND ALS COULD CO-EXIST. I literally cried with my mother because I have read this.
I can't have a neuro appointment, since I'm scheduled for surgery in 5 DAYS!
-Does this sound like ALS to you?
-Is that EMG helpful since they were looking for radiculopathy and not upper motor neurone disease?
-Is that EMG helpful since it was performed by the physiatrist and NOT a neuro?
-Is that EMG helpful or was it too early (more than a month since it was performed and the onset of symptoms)?
I'm thankful in advance.
I'm sorry for the poor quality of the EMG photo, you may have to zoom in a little, I'm so sorry :sad:
I hope you could help me out.
I'm a 25 y.o. male dental surgeon from Mexico. About 2 months ago I had some health issues that turned out to be a pretty big herniated disk in my lumbar spine (Specifically on L5-S1 vertebrae). Because of the size, I was adviced by my surgeon to get surgery. All good, no problems. "Just get lots of rest until surgery and everything will come up nice" I belived it since I GOT NO PAIN INVOLVED.
So I did it. Also I got an EMG about a month ago, requested by my surgeon as a routine.
The EMG said "Abnormal EMG that indicates left S1 radiculopathy"
*Note: I'll provide you the study below, I translated since it's in spanish (N = Normal; the "+" I don't know what it stands for but I was told it wasn't normal)
**Note: You'll notice the Dr left a blank space in the "nerve conduction" on the anterior tibialis muscle, that concerns me! (He couldn't pick my motor nerve conduction, did it died?)
**NOTE: The study was NOT done by a neuro or neurophysiologist, but by a physiatrist (specialist in physical and rehabilitation medicine)
At this point you all should be thinking: "this is a waste of time, what does it have to do with ALS?!"
But wait. This was only to give some background
About 3 weeks I experienced fasciculations on my left shoulder, wich was very, very unusual. At first I thought it was nothing. Then I started to experience increasing fasciculations on my left thigh (the supposedly affected one), left calf, BUT ALSO on the right tight and calf, both upper limbs and also on the back (although not as persistent and numerous as in the lower limbs). It doesn't stop!
They've began to feel a whole lot more and in greater numbers, but also I got pretty fine fasciculations that can only be visible if I or a relative stare at it with detail, cause I don't feel them, or I don't feel them quite as notoriously as the big ones (This scares me A LOT, since I've read from patients experience that they suffered from very fine twitches) Also about a week or so my right (supposedly "good one") began to feel so so weak, I knew that the "bad one" was a little bit weak, even my surgeon said it to me (he performed neuro examination on my legs and feet when he discovered the slipped disk, I wasn't even aware of suck weakness in contrast to the opposing limb), but my other one also? It feels so weak and there's a feeling that something ain't right. I feel like I'm about to lost balance and it happens quite often. When I get on my knees, my thighs feel so weak they start to tremble. Ironically my "good leg" is now much weaker than the one with the radiculopathy, when I got down the stairs it feels so weak, that it's about to give up and I'm gonna fall. My right hand also feels so so weak and clumsy.
Also: I don't have any tongue fasc. but I do notice that my voice isn't quite as normal. I feel so quiet and also like hoarsiness( I have to clear up my voice A LOT) And a very strange symptom: my left masseter muscle feels so stiff, it doesn't fasciculate but it's increadibly akward and it has began to bother me while eating.
As a healthcare profesional I'm aware of some ALS symptoms, so the persistent fasciculations (specially the fine ones) + weakness + voice issues = SCARED TO DEATH
My surgery is next week, and I got an anxiety attack after reading a case report of a patient that had an herniated disk but ALSO UNDIAGNOSED ALS!!!, so he went under surgery, and the surgery and anesthesia (the doctors in the article think) made the ALS progress unexpectedly fast!!! The article was even made TO CREATE AWARENESS THAT HERNIATED DISKS AND ALS COULD CO-EXIST. I literally cried with my mother because I have read this.
I can't have a neuro appointment, since I'm scheduled for surgery in 5 DAYS!
-Does this sound like ALS to you?
-Is that EMG helpful since they were looking for radiculopathy and not upper motor neurone disease?
-Is that EMG helpful since it was performed by the physiatrist and NOT a neuro?
-Is that EMG helpful or was it too early (more than a month since it was performed and the onset of symptoms)?
I'm thankful in advance.
I'm sorry for the poor quality of the EMG photo, you may have to zoom in a little, I'm so sorry :sad:
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