In response to your posting of a few days ago about Kerry's thoughts about
the diagnosing of neurological disorders:
" Anyway, he feels that TM is not being looked at closely enough, kinda being
swept under the rug. He said he thinks it was named because the docs were
diagnosing MS too much and the insurance companies were wanting more
specifics other than just MS."
First, I do not consider myself any expert in the diagnosis of TM because of
having been diagnosed in 1963. My mother used to tell how lucky I was to have
had a doctor who happened to see a case of TM during his residency.
But I do have a few thoughts about MRI's and the impact they are having on
diagnosis. As you know I have been going through the process of being
diagnosed for MS and I have been told (and read) that the MRI has become the
definitive test. Leasions = MS. No Leasions = No MS.
Before the MRI, the diagnosis was more by exclusion. I have been told that if
a neurologist were to only look at my symptoms, that I would be definitely
diagnosed with MS. But since my MRI this past November did not reveal any
leasions, I become one of those 2% of MS patients who do not exhibit
leasions.
I believe that the MRI has given the doctors and particularly neurologists
new tools to help diagnosis. It has eliminated the "best guess" to some
degree. But what it also creates is a group of patients who do not exhibit
"pure" neurological disorders and creates new questions and more puzzles for
us (the patients) to try to figure out.
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I have been reading many of the introductions and I have a question. I was
under the assumption that to be diagnosed with TM that you had to become
paralyzed in a rapid amout of time. For me it was 3-4 hours. I have read that
one third of the patients recover with little or no problems, another third
will recover and have moderate damage (me) , and one third will have little
recovery.
What I am not clear about - is that it appears that I have read quite a few
introductions and they do not talk about being paralyzed. A few have talked
about being diagnosed with MS or TM. If someone can clear this up for me, I
would be most appreciative.
Thanks
Al (AT) Sarasota, FL