Old school vs. New?

[marlo34]

Is this a "thing":  I read in a few places that older doctors are less apt to be "lesion counters"  and will diagnose based on clinical signs more than younger docs--that some younger doctors rely too heavily on a lesion count.
Is this something that is generally true?

[jenphilly]

My first neuro (Dr Weenie as well call him), ignored the lesions and insisted on CNS Lyme.  

After my LP came back with o-bands and i believe proteins pointing to MS, my  new neuro took literally everything together to confirm diagnosis.  As she pointed out, a single MS lesion can cause a world of problems, and yet there are others with 30 small lesions that cause very little tradtional MS symptoms.

Finding a doctor that looks at the whole picture is most important...  and honestly, they need to consider the patient...  I'm a sucky patient, ignored minor signs for 5 years, had the suck it up and walk it off attitude.  I was a single mom with a teenage daughter, I didn't have time to be sick!!  

Are you looking for a new neuro that is well versed and/or just a great doc to work with?   Post where you are, you might be surprised how often someone here can share who they have seen!

Best of luck!!

Jen

[opie74]

I honestly think it has more to do with where they were trained.  Different schools and specialty hospitals appear to have the most influence.

[torikat32]

most of my neuro's been to several unfortunatly were lesion counters always said I dont have enough of them to be MS and totally disregarded the symptoms and problems I am having. My new neuro whom I love looked and listened and seen with her own eyes the problems I have then looked at mri . I had a new mri last month and then was officially diagnosed. You will hear time and time again its not the amount of lesions you have I have 6 or 7 its the location of them that causes the problems.

[doublevision1]

I don't know....my neuro is young and he dx'ed me based on two lesions in two different locations,  my description of what turned out to be my first attack (Lhermitte's) and his clinical exam during my second attack.  There was a LP 'suggestive' of MS but not + for it (no O-bands).  

In monitoring me since dx, he says he's more concerned with how I'm doing functionally than what my MRI looks like.