EMG concerns
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Toto's Dorothy
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Kim, Marta, are we trolling?
I am sooo sorry that I am apparently insulting people. I really am. And I am not sure why this sounds familiar. I did read in several papers that temperature is important (among other things, fibrillations and short waves may be reduced or disappear). For instance, one EMG lab (which keeps the room temp at 78 F or 26 Celcius) suggests that if skin feels cold to the touch it is below 31 Celsius and and definitely needs to be warmed. Other papers suggest even higher temps. My hands and feet were definitely cold, especially by the time of the EMG. I was half naked! At one point, I asked to put my socks back on... So it's natural to ask what others' experiences were temp- wise.
I am freaking, because I have two young kids - a baby and a toddler. And I am the main breadwinner. Their lives will be screwed if I have this, and they wouldn't even remember me. And yeah, I am sure some others posting on this "Do I have..." have said something similar. So I am sorry yet again.
I am freaking, because I have two young kids - a baby and a toddler. And I am the main breadwinner. Their lives will be screwed if I have this, and they wouldn't even remember me. And yeah, I am sure some others posting on this "Do I have..." have said something similar. So I am sorry yet again.
jb63
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Sorry guys, this is not meant to encourage elva, but temperature is a factor. I was freezing with raynards disease during my second opinion. He burned my feet warming me with turbo heater and I was still icy for the test. It was dirty. So My fibs showed up even cold. You have to be icy to to possiby effect the test.
Ms. Pie
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We get a lot of people here that think they have ALS that don't and the stories are freakishly similar. You are fretting over every little thing. Even the temp in the room during your clean EMG. Let it go. Stop g****ing weird things to diagnose yourself. You're wasting time like you will live forever and that you will never get back and asking people that are running out of time to tell you that you have something to worry about. If your that worried, ask your doctor.
trfogey
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Do you mind answering a personal question? What do you do for a living, and where did you get your training on how to perform an EMG?
The thing that sounds familiar in your posts is that you look at your doctors as some kind of lesser qualified being that you are qualified to criticize, based on a few hours reading about the procedure.
So, basically, you've suggested that you have some kind of special knowledge about EMGs, how to perform them, and how to interpret them. Not to mention that you are so certain that specific types of evidence would be found that you specified exactly which technical flaw the operator made that suppressed that evidence.
So, now it's time to put or shut up -- are you trained in the use of the EMG or not? If so, how many years of experience do you have? If not, why all the fuss and Monday-Morning-quarterbacking about the procedure?
johnnyliverpool1
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why is it that the nut jobs actually canvas too have the worst desease known to man or woman...whats the psychology behind it.........johnnyflumoxed......
johnnyliverpool1
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the psychology just came too me....eg...when u look over a cliff.. the urge to jump can be overpowering...the mind is saying ..u could fall here so why dont u jump and get it over with........makes sense dont it.....johnnywellmaybenot
Toto's Dorothy
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Johnny,
(My lover from across the big pond), Step away from the edge and let the lemmings through.....
(My lover from across the big pond), Step away from the edge and let the lemmings through.....
I have been reluctant to post again, because some of the responses have been downright cruel and I am apparently unintentionally insulting people (which really is not my intention). At any rate - my GP has gotten back to me regarding the EMG report. It wasn't completely normal after all - somewhat reduced motor amplitudes were found in two (out of four) locations tested in the NCS (and yup, trf, I did google that, and in ALS, NCS are typically normal, or show slightly reduced motor amplitudes). The GP also followed up on my feeling cold later on during the EMG, and was disappointed that the report did not include temperature readings. He said he would not refer to this neuro again, and is sending me to get another EMG elsewhere to be sure that temperature did not affect the results. Btw, my GP is the one that wanted to have the EMG done in the first place...I thought I only had some vitamin deficiency when I went to see him.
Meanwhile, the soreness/fatigue/weakness (?) in my right arm and leg (especially around the joints, but I don't think the joints themselves are aching) appear to be getting slightly worse. They always feel like I have been doing too much exercise - brushing my teeth, going up the stairs etc takes some effort. I also have episodes of strange crampiness (not full blown charlie horse type cramps though) - this morning, for instance, my right toes felt 'waves' of crampiness for a good 15 minutes. I have also been getting muscle aches (like you get a day after doing a new exercise routine) very easily after not very out of the ordinary movements, such as in my stomach (prob due to sitting up to feed the baby at night - which I have been doing for 8 months!) and right shoulder (after carrying a milk container for a coupe of minutes). Btw, my right pinky doesn't extend up nearly as much as my left - but I am not sure if that has always been that way.
I am trying to think of arguments that would point away from ALS: Wouldn't it be unusual, to get almost simultaneous onset in the right arm and leg? Anything else in my symptoms that point away from ALS? Or is there something to be concerned about? Just a reminder of the timeline, 7 weeks since the start of twitching, and 5 weeks since the start of soreness/fatigue. The twitching started in my right hand, but is now at least 80% in my legs, from feet to the thighs (pretty much all the time I am at rest) with random pops in my shoulder, neck, back, and of course some in my hands.
I am hoping that all these symptoms are just from lack of sleep (I am up 3 times a night to feed), combined with some middle age complaints and a sprinkle or two (or more) of anxiety. But the continuous popping/twitching, coupled with the muscle fatigue, is just sooo hard to ignore.
For those that make constructive comments - thanks so much in advance for your time.
Meanwhile, the soreness/fatigue/weakness (?) in my right arm and leg (especially around the joints, but I don't think the joints themselves are aching) appear to be getting slightly worse. They always feel like I have been doing too much exercise - brushing my teeth, going up the stairs etc takes some effort. I also have episodes of strange crampiness (not full blown charlie horse type cramps though) - this morning, for instance, my right toes felt 'waves' of crampiness for a good 15 minutes. I have also been getting muscle aches (like you get a day after doing a new exercise routine) very easily after not very out of the ordinary movements, such as in my stomach (prob due to sitting up to feed the baby at night - which I have been doing for 8 months!) and right shoulder (after carrying a milk container for a coupe of minutes). Btw, my right pinky doesn't extend up nearly as much as my left - but I am not sure if that has always been that way.
I am trying to think of arguments that would point away from ALS: Wouldn't it be unusual, to get almost simultaneous onset in the right arm and leg? Anything else in my symptoms that point away from ALS? Or is there something to be concerned about? Just a reminder of the timeline, 7 weeks since the start of twitching, and 5 weeks since the start of soreness/fatigue. The twitching started in my right hand, but is now at least 80% in my legs, from feet to the thighs (pretty much all the time I am at rest) with random pops in my shoulder, neck, back, and of course some in my hands.
I am hoping that all these symptoms are just from lack of sleep (I am up 3 times a night to feed), combined with some middle age complaints and a sprinkle or two (or more) of anxiety. But the continuous popping/twitching, coupled with the muscle fatigue, is just sooo hard to ignore.
For those that make constructive comments - thanks so much in advance for your time.
TedH5
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I am sure that if your Neuro (who you said was Board Certified) had concerns about the room temperature or was concerned when you said you were cold he would have done something about it.
Does your GP find any clinical weakness when he does an exam of you?
I would not stress out about this. Please do not allow your concern to become an unhealthy obsession.
Good luck on your next EMG, let us know how it goes.
Does your GP find any clinical weakness when he does an exam of you?
I would not stress out about this. Please do not allow your concern to become an unhealthy obsession.
Good luck on your next EMG, let us know how it goes.
trfogey
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The biggest thing that points away from ALS in your case is the nature of your twitching, how quickly it has spread, and the lack of corresponding weakness in the areas where the twitching occurs.
The twitching in early ALS is so mild that patients often can't feel it. And that twitching is almost always confined to one location and spreads slowly into the rest of the body from there. By the time that ALS fasciculations spread out into the entire body, substantial muscle weakness is usually found in the earliest places affected.
Finally, if this twitching has spread this quickly through your body and is caused by ALS, paralysis will follow equally quickly behind it because the ALS fasciculations are caused by denervation and that denervation causes paralysis, it causes it instantly, and it is manifested as permanent muscle weakness, reduced or absent reflexes, and flaccid muscle tone.
You claim to be looking for things that point away from ALS. Here's the one that counts : you may continue to twitch and cramp for the next six months, but you won't notice any significant loss of muscle strength. Because that is really what tells the doctors that you have ALS -- progressive permanent paralysis. That's what ALS is all about. Motor neuron cells in the brain and spinal cord die and the muscle fibers they control become paralyzed. End of story.
We have a saying in the ALS community:
"Start fast, progress fast, end fast."
And its converse:
"Start slow, progress slow, end slow."
I am a slow progressor and I have never gone six months without measurable progression. Let us know how you are six months from now.
The twitching in early ALS is so mild that patients often can't feel it. And that twitching is almost always confined to one location and spreads slowly into the rest of the body from there. By the time that ALS fasciculations spread out into the entire body, substantial muscle weakness is usually found in the earliest places affected.
Finally, if this twitching has spread this quickly through your body and is caused by ALS, paralysis will follow equally quickly behind it because the ALS fasciculations are caused by denervation and that denervation causes paralysis, it causes it instantly, and it is manifested as permanent muscle weakness, reduced or absent reflexes, and flaccid muscle tone.
You claim to be looking for things that point away from ALS. Here's the one that counts : you may continue to twitch and cramp for the next six months, but you won't notice any significant loss of muscle strength. Because that is really what tells the doctors that you have ALS -- progressive permanent paralysis. That's what ALS is all about. Motor neuron cells in the brain and spinal cord die and the muscle fibers they control become paralyzed. End of story.
We have a saying in the ALS community:
"Start fast, progress fast, end fast."
And its converse:
"Start slow, progress slow, end slow."
I am a slow progressor and I have never gone six months without measurable progression. Let us know how you are six months from now.
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