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heavnscnt

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Jul 4, 2006
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Reason
CALS
Country
CA
State
ontario
City
here
this is my first time here......my husband, 54 yrs old, has all the symptoms of ALS and has had some testing, emg and mri, which both came back so called "normal" but doctors are still sure he has ALS......he is waiting to have his second MRI and waiting to get an appt with some doctor that specializes in ALS in london ontario.....i don't get it what exactly do they need to do to say either he does or doesn't have ALS? is it several tests or is there just one? he was first tested back in december of last year. Any info would sure help right about now
thank you
 
als diagnosis

I have been told that als is a diagnosis of elimination. Meaning als is given as the diagnosis if nothing else can be found. A lot of times als is not diagnosed until you have some disability and all other tests such as ct scans, mri, spinal taps, blood tests, etc. show nothing else. Hopefully they will find something. I hope this helps you.

whitey
 
Hi there heavvnscnt. Sorry about your luck being here but if you're going to see Dr Strong in London he's one of the best around so you'll be in good hands. There is no one test for ALS. They test for everything else under the sun and then if it's not any of them then it must be ALS or one of the other related motor neuron diseases. Hope this helps and don't be afraid to ask questions or use the search feature to find other information. Welcome to our little corner of the world. Al.
 
Hello.
Just like the others have said, I've heard (even from my doctors) that ALS is diagnosed by a process of elimination and there isn't any one test that can say you do or don't have it. When I was diagnosed, my doctors explained what they had to see in order to make such a diagnosis: 1. upper motor neuron damage, 2. lower motor neuron damage, and 3. progression.
I'm surprised that your husband's EMG was clear...I'd think it would show some sort of damage to his nerves if he's been diagnosed with ALS. Sometimes it can take a while for it to show up though. My first EMG was clear. In addition, the damage to my upper motor neurons (breathing and swallowing problems) still isn't symptomatic--that's why I thought I was safe!
Anyhow, I hope this helps. Please let us know how you're doing.
Heather
 
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