Concern about MS

[congo74]

Hi,
Thanks for reading this. I'm a 34 year old husband and father. I live a very active lifestyle with long distance running.
I have a "light" feeling of pins and needles almost every other minute of the day. It is primarily in my feet but it can appear everywhere: hands, face, thighs, back - you name it. I also have a little bit of muscular spasm.
It started about a month and a half ago. During a VERY stressful period of my life where I thought that I had contracted HIV (from a low risk encounter). Here almost 10 1/2 weeks later and after numerous tests I know now that I don't have it. However, I still experience the pins and needles even though I am on antidepressant Celexa 60mg. I also take Lisinopril 20mg (for high blood pressure). Note that I started with Celexa after the pins and needles started.    

Could this be MS?
I
'm thinking that if it was related to anxiety over HIV shouldn't be gone now where I have been told that I don't have it?
Note that I am the worry type of guy, I always think the worst case scenario and I have tendency to be obsessive about my health. There is no family history of MS as far as I know. However I am from Northern Europe and live currently in Pacific Northwest...
P.s. I'm going in for a brain MRI next week. I have been told that it should give me a good idea whether or not it is MS. Can you confirm this?

Thanks so much in advance.

A VERY WORRIED GUY :(

[congo74]

yeah that is a great term to use! at least they didn't say "the patient had a not remarkable brain"! :-)
I will do a little more blood testing and update the post if something shows up.
Thanks again and have a great summer!
Congo

[congo74]

Thanks Heather - between you and I (AND everyone else reading this :). I did practice "safe sex" as outlined by the CDC. To elaborate on my original post the concern about hiv stemmed from french kissing and oral sex. According to the CDC there is one documented incident of hiv transmission through kissing and oral sex is considered low risk. Also in addition to these "symptoms" I have disclosed everything to my wife and we are working through this as well. Trust me, I learned a lot from taking that "wrong step"...

Take care,
Congo

[Heather3418]

In all kindness, may I suggest that you practice safe sex, so you no longer have to worry about STD's?  I really mean that from my heart.  It's something all of us have to do if we are single/married; if we are going to be intimate with others.

All the best,
Heather

[Lulu54]

Congo,
Its a pretty excellent feeling to read that you are *unremarkable* for something like a brain MRI, isn't it?  :-)

I would venture a guess that this is a virus working its way out of your system - the pins and needles will be gone completely when it has run its course. That's my prediction.

congrats!
Lulu

[congo74]

Thanks Lulu!
Here is the report.


Clinical information:
34-year-old male with paresthesias and muscle spasm. Concern for multiple sclerosis.

Procedure:
Sagittal FLAIR, axial FLAIR, axial T2, axial GRE, axial DWI, coronal T1, coronal T1 enhanced, axial T1 enhanced. 10 ml Multihance was administered intravenously.

Findings:
The brain parenchyma and CSF containing spaces are unremarkable. No focal signal abnormality, mass producing lesion, abnormal enhancement, acute infarct, ventriculomegaly or intracranial hermorrhage. Normal flow voids are present within the major vascular structures.

Impression:
Unremarkable MRI of the brain

Since the MRI the pins and needles have pretty much disappeared. I still have very light muscle twitching primarily in my lower legs.

Congo

[Lulu54]

That is the kind of wonderful news we like to hear around here - now go, enjoy life, and stay well!

Lulu

[congo74]

Well, I just got the results from my MRI yesterday. No sign of MS or any other abnormalities. The MRI was done with a 1.5T machine following the MS protocol.
Now, I know that there is a 5% chance of it not showing up but I still thinks it deserves a "HURRAY!". At this point I will go with the 95% and put MS on the "shelf" for now. I might pursue an explanation to my odd but very mild sensations in the autoimmune forum.
Thanks again to all of you for your support, encouragement and for sharing your experiences with me. Very much appreciated!

[congo74]

Also I just called the place where I'm going to get the MRI. After researching this site I wanted to make that they are following the MS protocol for MRI's and they confirmed that they are. Their MRI is a 1.5T which I understand is not as good as a 3T but better than nothing at all right?

[congo74]

Thanks all for responding. I really appreciate it. My PCP, who is also the Medical Director at the practice I go to ordered the MRI - to give me a :peace of mind" as she said. Initially, she will review the results of the MRI but if there is ANYTHING that seems abnormal she will hand it over to their neurologist to look at it and work with me. Not sure if that is the best process but to this point this is how far I have gotten.
In addition to HIV tests (and various other STD tests) I have also had complete blood work done, CBC, including B12 level, cancer related blood tests,  thyroid etc. You name it. Everything came back within range. I even had a test done to measure the level of mercury in my body - low 1.5 ug/l. I remember reading a survey some where that people with MS had up to 8 times higher level of mercury in their blood. Sorry, I know it sounds nuts getting tested for that but that's just me :-)
I'm already seeing a therapist who is helping me with my mental health. Also I should mention that I do have a "history" of anxiety creating physical symtomps. About 5 years ago I also thought that I had HIV which caused me to have a weird tingling in my genital area for two months. It eventually went away after I learned that I didn't have it. I was the strangest thing !!!
Thanks again, I will keep you all posted.

[essdipity]

Hi and welcome. I'm glad to say that your symptoms don't sound like MS at all. As others have noted, MS does not cause "all over" anything. That would be virtually impossible.

It's good you're having this checked out, and I wish you well. Let us know if the MRI shows any abnormalities. I'm betting it won't. Since you have a history of health anxiety, it is likely that that's what's happening now, regardless of whether the HIV possibility is still in the picture. If your symptoms persist with no cause shown, you might want to talk it over with a therapist. That would be a logical next step.

ess

[Janette2836]

Welcome to this forum!  Most of us are not "experts" in the medical field but we can share our experiences & thoughts on things with others.  A great resource is located in the Health Pages which is at the top right hand of the screen - it is a yellow icon.

First off - I am glad that you have an MRI scheduled.  There are many things that mimic MS - have you had any other blood tests besides the HIV?

Please know that sometimes finding out what is wrong with us takes a long time but you know your body - keep searching for answers.  In the mean time - it is good to record your symptoms on a timeline so you can present the information to a doctor (the symptom, how long it lasted, where it is, major events going on in your life at the same time).  I find that when I record these things then I don't think on them all day long.  

I know it is stressful to see these strange things happen to our bodies but try not to worry about them.

Take care & keep us posted

Janette

[steph74]

Hi Congo,

I'm not an expert, but my understanding was that MS tends to cause symptoms is specific places--e.g. your left leg or right pinky finger--rather than moving about to different places.  You mentioned that you tend to worry a lot and just had a stressful episode in your life, so it's likely that the tingling is related to that.

That said, it definitely makes sense to get checked out by a doctor.  Are you getting the MRI on the advice of a neurologist or primary care doctor?  A neurologist is who would dx MS, but a PCP could give you a good idea of whether you need to see a neuro or not.  If your sx continue or progress, you should get an appointment with a neuro.

Good luck.

Stephanie

[congo74]

One more thing - I do know that I have HSV 1 even though I have never had a cold sore. Could this cause me to develop MS?