clonus

[neubie]

At My last Doc appointment I was told that I had unilateral Ankle Clonus. Could this be a sign of MS? My Brain MRI and Cervical MRI were clear. This week I had to go for a Thoracic and Lumbar both with contrast. What is he looking for. Even with two clear MRI's could I have MS? This is driving me nuts!

[Abhijeet Deshmukh, MD]

Hello.

I am sorry if I did not clarify about the word "lesion" which is a general term. A lesion could be a tumor, cyst, compression due to disc prolapse, demyelination, infarct, etc. I is unlikely that your MRI will show demyelination, in view of the normal MRI brain and cervical cord.

There may be some other cause, possibly from the list I mentioned. And I suspect you do not have any other symptoms which suggest MS.

Regards

[neubie]

Just wanted to see if you would let me know what are some causes of lesions besides MS? Thank you in advance

[neubie]

just moving back to the top

[neubie]

Thank you for the info! If a lesion is detected does that mean I have MS for sure? What else could a lesion represent?

[Abhijeet Deshmukh, MD]

Hello.

Ankle clonus suggests upper motor neuron lesion. This is possible in MS. But you should have a clinical picture which doesn't fit into other diagnoses. MS is a diagnosis of exclusion. There should always be an attempt to screen and rule out other diseases before you can call it MS.

Your doctor is hoping to find a lesion in the thoracic or the lumbar spinal cord to explain the ankle clonus. A spinal cord lesion produces upper motor neuron lesion signs, like the clonus.

Regards