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Neurology (Expert Forum)
encephalopathic?
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encephalopathic?
by Sara, Mar 23, 2001 12:00AM
for one year been having cognitive problems/slow speech/memory/vertigo problems after what was thought to be possible meningoencephalitis or mild meningitis. was seen by md about 5 days after illness, At that time i was Rx antivert, no test were run.That dr said ear infection.
Just recently went to another md who thought it possibly could have been the menigo illness that i mentioned above, ran blood work, showed herpes simplex type 1 IGG )5.00 and EBV IGM AB )3.00, Lyme 23KD.
MY QUESTIONS: could a test have been run when I first got sick and perhaps meds been given so I wouldn't still have these problems? Is this any meds I can take to help me get over these symptoms? Might these symtoms go away eventually? Does it seem possible that i have some kind of reoccurring infection?
Although it shows past infection, could this also be a pseudodementia?
I used to be fine before I got sick a year ago. Since this has been going on for a year now, I'm so tired of having to think and deal with this...I want ALL the symptoms to just go away.
Are you able to answer or give opinion to my questions? Thank you for any info you provide.
Just recently went to another md who thought it possibly could have been the menigo illness that i mentioned above, ran blood work, showed herpes simplex type 1 IGG )5.00 and EBV IGM AB )3.00, Lyme 23KD.
MY QUESTIONS: could a test have been run when I first got sick and perhaps meds been given so I wouldn't still have these problems? Is this any meds I can take to help me get over these symptoms? Might these symtoms go away eventually? Does it seem possible that i have some kind of reoccurring infection?
Although it shows past infection, could this also be a pseudodementia?
I used to be fine before I got sick a year ago. Since this has been going on for a year now, I'm so tired of having to think and deal with this...I want ALL the symptoms to just go away.
Are you able to answer or give opinion to my questions? Thank you for any info you provide.
Doctor's Answer
by CCF Neuro[P]-M.D.-RPS, Mar 23, 2001 12:00AM
Dear Sara:
Sorry that your having problems. It is difficult to tell you if you had meningitis a year ago. However, we usually see more profound symptoms at the time of the illness than you described. So, a guess would be that you did not have an acute meningitis. The lab values you gave me do not have reference values so I can't tell you too much about what they may mean. Almost everyone has Herpes IgG titers, so that doesn't tell you if herpes was the infection, but if it were, likely you would be severely compromised. Most poeple have been infected with EBV, but having a low titer of an IgM might mean that within the last several weeks to a couple of months you had an EBV infection. This would not account for the year ago event. What is the lyme titer? The 23 Kd is a molecular weight of a protein and not necessarily Lyme protein. Could this be pseudodementia? I can't tell from what you have told me. Could it be from the medications? You did not tell me about the medications except ativert-and this would not cause your symptoms. I am not sure what to tell you. Sorry, I am not much help.
Sincerely,
CCF Neuro MD
Sorry that your having problems. It is difficult to tell you if you had meningitis a year ago. However, we usually see more profound symptoms at the time of the illness than you described. So, a guess would be that you did not have an acute meningitis. The lab values you gave me do not have reference values so I can't tell you too much about what they may mean. Almost everyone has Herpes IgG titers, so that doesn't tell you if herpes was the infection, but if it were, likely you would be severely compromised. Most poeple have been infected with EBV, but having a low titer of an IgM might mean that within the last several weeks to a couple of months you had an EBV infection. This would not account for the year ago event. What is the lyme titer? The 23 Kd is a molecular weight of a protein and not necessarily Lyme protein. Could this be pseudodementia? I can't tell from what you have told me. Could it be from the medications? You did not tell me about the medications except ativert-and this would not cause your symptoms. I am not sure what to tell you. Sorry, I am not much help.
Sincerely,
CCF Neuro MD
I posted a question on this site called 'woozy, drunk feeling/twitches' back in Feb this year, that went as follows:
"My health took a downward turn in Sept last year. I had swollen glands in my neck very badly, sweating in the night, mucus/puss on my tonsils etc and very bad headaches/difficulty looking into light etc...
That subsided and left me with a horrible foggy/cloudy head feeling. Like I had a veil infront my face that I wanted to lift and become part of the real world again. I then got very dizzy. When I moved the world would shake infront of me, my keyboard would jump out at me, and it was like looking at the world through a shakey hand held camera. I also had balance problems, like when i closed my eyes i would fall over. Doctor gave me serc for an inner ear problem but it didnt work. However, after about 3-4 weeks, this calmed down.
Present Symptoms:
Now however, I am left with a horrible woozy, almost drunk feeling in my head all the time, I never feel "with it" and find doing normal tasks difficult cus I cant consentrate and my short term memory sems bad! When I try to sleep I frequently get a sensation as if my body is going back and forth quite quickly. - A sensation i only got when I was drunk before all this started. The nost worrying thing is that I get muscle twitches very frequently. My calfs twitch a lot, my eyelid twitches and muscles in my back, both volentary and non volentary muscles twitch and spasm. I found that when I smile my mouth would twitch, and I spill my drink sometimes when I hold the cup up to my mouth because in certain positions I cannot stop it from jerking. I also have a few balance problems where I feel like falling over when I do things.
Over the last week, I have been having jolt like experiences that feel like electric shocks going across my torso, and down mailny my left arm. It seems to happen funnily enough when I look toward the side! The eye movement to the right mainly will make this jolt sensation, although it happens when i dont look right. It doesnt happen when i look down or put my chin on my chest!
My neurologist did an examination where he hit my reflexes and made me walk etc.. and said it all looked normal but is recommending a head and chest scan. This may take quite a few weeks, if not months. I am worried as to what it might be. I thought I'd give all my symptoms from start to finish, maybe some are not relevant. Do you have any ideas?"
What I didnt mention was that I had just started University when this started and 4 weeks before the onset of symptoms I had a Meningitis C jab.
I am scard I have had undetected Meningitis (v bad headaches, difficulty looking into light etc...) and it has left me feeling this way! I have not improved much although my muscle twitches have stopped now, and I still feel constantly foggy/muffled in my head and am scared I am damaged by meningitis! Any help would be appreciated (my email at ***@****) and I will also try posting this as a propar question to the Neuro if i can get through!! If u get any idea of what is up Sara, feel free to contact me, I am in same position as you in my fear of damage, as I wasnt treated for meningitis at all, even tho I told my doc my symptoms who just fobbed me off as stressed!