Every now and again most of us have felt odd sensations in our bodies. For instance, your foot might fall asleep and feel tingly, or you’re suddenly dizzy, or you may experience a sense of overwhelming exhaustion. In most instances, there’s nothing to worry about, but these symptoms might also indicate a more serious medical condition, such as multiple sclerosis. Signs of MS are tricky because they not only come and go, but they can also mimic other conditions.
The cause of multiple sclerosis is still unknown, but it’s considered an autoimmune disease in which the body’s immune system damages myelin — the fatty substance that coats and protects nerve fibers in the central nervous system. As a result, communication to other areas of the body goes haywire, which can create a wide range of problems.
“There isn’t one specific symptom that definitively points to multiple sclerosis,” says Dr. Barry Hendin, MS specialist with the Comprehensive Multiple Sclerosis Center at Banner University Medical Center “That’s why an MS diagnosis not only requires a review of symptoms but also an MRI — a test that uses a magnetic field and pulses of radio wave energy to make pictures of organs in the body. For an MS diagnosis, we look for lesions (scarring) in the brain and spinal cord.”
[Read: Surprising Ways MS Can Affect You.]
MS experts agree that the sooner multiple sclerosis is diagnosed and the earlier treatment begins, the better. So, if you experience any of the following symptoms, let your doctor know right away:
Numbness or tingling after a workout. It’s not unusual to feel a little beat after a workout and even feel numbness or tingling in your legs following a several-mile run. But with multiple sclerosis, it’s different. “If someone develops numbness, tingling or weakness after a workout, and it’s only on one side of the body, that might indicate MS,” says Dr. Elena Grebenciucova, neurologist and MS expert at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago. “The numbness or tingling could be mild or so severe that it makes walking difficult. If it’s MS, it’s usually a temporary condition brought on by rising body temperature. Once you cool down, the symptom usually subsides, but it shouldn’t be ignored,” Grebenciucova says.
Even if you receive an MS diagnosis, it’s important to continue exercising, perhaps with modifications such as keeping your body cooler while working out either in an air-conditioned room, outdoors during early morning or evening hours, wearing a cooling wrist, vest or neck wrap or staying hydrated. Recent studies show people with MS can not only tolerate physical exercise, but also working out helps to manage symptoms, prevent complications and may even offer protection against relapses.
[Read: 8 Ways to Ease MS Pain.]
Loss of sensation below the waist. “Numbness in the chest down, including the belly button area, indicates lesions in the spinal cord,” Hendin says. “This symptom can last for a week, months or forever.” But Hendin is clear that there’s treatment even for more intense episodes. “If it’s acute, we can start the MS patient on effective medications, such as steroids.”
Tingling in both hands. If you’re typing at your computer for hours a day and you feel tingling in your hands, there’s a good chance that you might believe or your doctor might diagnose the problem as c arpal tunnel syndrome, caused by pressure on the median nerve in the wrist. “But if the tingling appears in both hands at the same time, develops over a day or two and lasts 24 hours or longer, there’s a good chance it’s may be a symptom of MS,” Grebenciucova says. “Carpal tunnel is related to the position in which the wrist is held. If it’s MS, the pain is caused by lesions, and the numbness or tingling is constant regardless of where, or how, your wrist is placed,” she adds. If the pain is misdiagnosed, it can lead to useless carpal tunnel release surgery. Research published in the journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings reported the cases of 12 patients who had experienced an unsuccessful outcome from CTR surgery. It turns out that most of them didn’t have carpal tunnel, but other neurological conditions, including MS.
Thrown off balance. It’s one thing if you tip over during a leg lift in tai chi or a handstand in yoga, but it’s another if you feel imbalanced while you’re stepping down from a curb, moving from reclining to standing or climbing stairs. “You might assume you’re feeling dizzy or off-kilter because you have a case of vertigo (the sensation of the room whirling) caused by an inner ear problem — and sometimes doctors misdiagnose it this way,” Grebenciucova says. “But if you feel dizzy when you’re overheated — either from environmental temperature, exercising, a fever or after taking a hot bath or shower — and the dizziness diminishes in intensity once you cool down, it’s a sign that the cause of the dizziness or imbalance could be MS,” she explains. According to a report in the journal Multiple Sclerosis, up to 20 percent of MS patients experience some sensations of vertigo.
Seeing double. Your eyes are tired. The lighting is bad. Or your eyeglass prescription needs adjustment. These are all common conclusions folks come to when their vision blurs. So, first make an appointment with an ophthalmologist to find out if your vision problem is any of those usual suspects. But for many patients, a vision problem is their first symptom of MS. “The problem might be caused by lesions on the optic nerve pathway or inflammation of the optic nerve,” Hendin says. “Symptoms can include dimming of vision, blindness in one eye or blurring, all of which are usually temporary. After treatment with medications, your eyesight can fully recover,” he adds.
[Read: What Role Could the Mediterranean Diet Have in Countering MS?]
Overwhelmed with exhaustion. Who isn’t tired these days? It’s understandable if feelings of exhaustion are taken for granted. But MS fatigue is different. “It can come on suddenly, happens daily and can even take over in the morning after a good night’s sleep,” Grebenciucova says. “Exhaustion can also worsen during the day and get so bad that it interferes with your planned activities. Heat and humidity can either trigger fatigue or make it worse,” she adds. According to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, about 80 percent of MS sufferers experience this kind of extreme fatigue.
“If your symptoms lead to a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis, your future is still hopeful,” Hendin points out. “We now have plenty of disease-modifying therapies to prevent the onset of MS relapses, and in most cases, there are ways to keep disabilities from worsening.”
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6 Surprising Signs You May Have MS originally appeared on usnews.com
