Newbie w/ 3-T MRI Results

[MAGrl]

Hi all,  I am a very grateful “lurker” who has learned much from this board. As with many I am Un-Dx and am struggling everyday with many of the same symptoms. I am a 48 year old female.  The MRI  (done on a 3-T) of the brain is normal so I won’t bore you with that, the cervical reads as follows:

The spinal cord shows a few areas of questionable T2 prolongation. They are at the bottom of C2 level, C2-C3 level, and possibly at the C3 level. No mass effect. No contracts enhancement throughout the cervical spine.  

Incidental mild annular bulge at C4-C5 and C5-C6.  This produces at most mild central canal stenosis.

Impression:  Few areas of possible T2 hyperintensities within the cervical spine cord as described.

My symptoms started in July with numbness, pins and needles in both of my feet up to my knees.  Six weeks later I had numbness, pins and needles, and buzzing, in both arms, both legs, and face. I still have the numbness; the pins and needles and buzzing only when tired or stressed. I also have mild vertigo, stiff neck, muscle stiffness in legs, and heat intolerance (no more hot showers). Mostly I feel like I have someone else’s legs.

Thankfully, I have an excellent PCP who sent me off to a Neuo who then sent me off to a MS Clinic. I’ve been tested and re-tested for all of the mimics.  I did have a positive ANA initially but it’s back to normal. The spinal tap (done in January) had only elevated Myelin Basic Protein. My initial MRI’s were done on an open 1.5T and were normal.

Any insight into what this MRI means would be appreciated; I see the MS Doc in May. I did speak with her about these results but she wants to show them to another Doc and maybe do another spinal tap. I really don’t want to do the spinal as if the one in Jan didn’t show anything other than MBP what is the likelihood that it will in May?

Thanks again for all of the wisdom shared!!

MAGrl

[jensequitur]

With a few T2 hyperintense lesions in the neck, it sounds like MS to me as well.  It's unusual but not unheard of to have lesions in the neck and none in the brain - I think there's a couple of people here with that phenomenon.  

Do you get a buzzing, electrical sensation when you put your chin to your chest?  This is L'Hermittes, and it's a sign of a lesion or other form of damage to your spinal cord.

If you haven't already, visit the Health Pages section (at the top of this page, to the right).  There's several helpful articles written by Quix and others that will help you identify what's going on with your MRI.

Have you had a spinal tap yet?

[MAGrl]

Sorry, in my attempt to keep it brief I think I left things out; I did have a 3T MRI of the Brain and Cervical Spine w/and w/o contrast.  I only posted the Cervical rpt as the brain was completely normal..lol.  Thanks for the nice welcome!!!

I also had a normal EMG and VEP.

MAGrl

[Heather3418]

Borrowing an injury to the cervical area of your spine and minus any other reasons for these elongated lesions, I would guess this may indeed by demyelination lesions.  It's too bad that your brain scan was not done at power 3 telsa MRI machine.

Lesions only in the spine, if this is Multiple Sclerosis, would be unusual but not unheard of. Certainly.  Your symptoms match up to something neurological going on and you say they are made worse by over-doing or stressed.  

I noticed that my symptoms would get worse temporarily if I took a hot shower and exposed my spine to too much heat.  I would exit the shower with tingling around my mid-section, where my spinal lesion is and my legs would feel very heavy.  I noticed that I seemed overly fatigued when I got out of the hot shower.  Once I seemed to cool down, the tingling, fatigue and leg heaviness, disappeared.  

Usually people with MS complain about one sided problems more so than bi-lateral symptoms, but; with the lesions they have found at various levels of your spine, either or both sides COULD be affected, especially in light of some mild spinal stenosis.  

It sounds like you are in the early stages of whatever is causing your symptoms.  I would bet that a follow-up MRI of the brain with and without contrast dye, (on a 3T) may indeed show lesions that were missed before.  Many people here have said that their lesions were missed on the 1.5 MRI and showed up on the more powerful MRI.

I would ask that the brain MRI be repeated before I would submit to another LP.  With your symptoms and evidence on MRI of the spinal lesions, a diagnosis may be cinched with a positive MRI of the brain.  Every Neuro is different in the way they seem to want the criteria to match their way of thinking when it comes to MS.  It's strange.

Hope you have a good day and hope you feel better soon.  I am glad that you posted and hope that you continue to share your story with us.  Welcome to the MS Forum.

Heather