I reiterate my point.
My experience so far is that the medical profession is not very good with
this disease, at least in my case. My treatment with steroids was delayed
12 days from onset while the doctors accused me of faking, and as a
result, I am wheel chair bound.
The literature supports this view. I have done quite a bit of research at
major medical center libraries.
Let me recommend one article in particular.
"Lupus Transverse Myelopathy: better outcome with early recognition and
aggressive high dose intravenous corticosteroid pulse treatment."
Journal of Neurology Vol 242, May 1995
These patients had Lupus, but TM can come from many diffluent sources.
Mine, we think came from a tetanus shot. Other articles describe similar
findings from other disease etiologies.
In any event, the article which studied seven patients retrospectively,
concluded that delay in diagnosis and treatment resulted in poor outcomes.
Four patients died, and one became wheelchair bound. Two recovered completely.
These received the high dose steroid treatment in the first week. The wheel
chair patient received it on the twelfth day (just like me). The patients
who died did not.
Other articles recommend MRI with contrast for diagnosis and indicate the
diagnostic process and the markers for diagnosis.
While this disease is comparatively rare, it is not in neurological
circles. A competent (Stress competent) and caring neurologist will get the
diagnoses and treatment right and give it's victims much of their life back.
Every article I have read, going back as far as 1977, twenty years ago,
supports this view.
Many of the articles try to downplay their conclusions. My view of that is
they are trying to protect colleagues from malpractice suits. Read the
articles and not the summaries.
-- Edrie Goldstein