should I be worried

[wmac]

Hello and thank you for taking my question. For the last three or four months my knee has been bothering me alot, now for the last three weeks to one months I have had alot of body cramping and twitching. I have always had twitching but lately its been worse not always in the same spot but all over. My doc just did some blood work yesterday checking for like ten different things, lupus, blood protiens, elctrolytes etc.. I just had blood work done in sept. for my ep study for my heart. My potassium was 3.2 and the low is 3.5 my wbc was 3500 and normal is 4500-10000. So I get on the net and read about body cramping and twitching and of course ALS comes up. Now im very nervous and scared. How common is ALS and what are the chances of a 41 year old women getting it. I had a mri for ms back two years ago I had had symptoms back in 1988 of ms so we finally did the mri two years ago and it was normal. My doc yesterday said he would think this was more ms than als but I said I had the mri and it was normal and he said I see that. opps uh. Should I be scared or worried. I dont think I have had any weakness, my hand was hurting yesterday and the top of my foot hurts too. This summer I had some weakness in my hands couldnt hold a knife to cut a melon but it went away. I dont drink enough fluids I know could dehydration cause this and I do not eat well like one meal a day. Im hoping its something from that. Thank you for your time.
wmac

[CCF-Neuro-M.D.-PW]

ALS is a very rare disease. Muscle twitching from non-ALS causes is quite common andcan be caused by just exercise, exposure to cold, a benign syndrome of fasciculations, an overactive throid gland, pinched nerves, or other rarer disorders of the spinal cord. Twitching that is more widespread is lesslikely to be ALS, and twitchingwithout muscle wasting or weakness is very unlikely to be ALS.

Good luck

[ozark]

your potassium is just a little low...try drinking some oj for a few days and see if that helps....also await the drs reply good luck

[Tulio]

My story (sorry a bit long). I am very scared, appreciate any comments or help.

Low Back Pain, started around 1993. Felt when standing and walking. Could not stand or walk for more than 20 min. Fatigue in legs and joints. Significant improvement with Myonal (Eperisone Hcl) in Oct 2005.

Neck Pain and stiffness: After car crash in 2003. Pain that comes and goes. Impossible to move in some occasions (for example after coughing or sneezing). Xray ok. 2 upper vertebras fused from birth. Significant improvement with Myonal (Eperisone Hcl) in Oct 2005.

Sharp pain rectum/groin. Started in March 2005. Moves to the leg. Stabbing sensation lasting 3 or 4 seconds. Once or twice a day.

May 2005 - Sneezing every morning, many times, lots of phlegm. Eventually turn to coughing. Long-lasting symptoms of cold or flu.

Jun 2005 – Muscle Twitching. Everywhere and all the time at the beginning, then it became less frequent but stronger. Calf, face, lips, arms, legs, feet, abdomen… you name it. The twitching started exactly after having an electro-acupuncture session (?). At the same time I was also drinking a supplement of Glucosamine (powder) that tasted horrible and could not finish. I wonder if that supplement or the electro-acupuncture session could have triggered the twitching.

Aug 2005 – Sensory symptoms appeared progressively. Tinnitus, itching, head pressure, stinging sensations in the body (like bitten by insect), burning, some tics in the fingers, pulsating sensation in abdomen, palpitations, chest pain, sharp pain behind ribs.

Took Myonal for 3 weeks and low back pain and neck pain almost disappeared. All the other symptoms remain the same.

Oct 2005 - Progressive feeling of weakness and popping (cracking noise) in joints of shoulders, ankles, knees, wrists and hips. Had some discomfort in joints before (for years) but never like this.

Nov 2005 – Feel like weakness and strong pain in hands and forearms. Muscle pain in tights. Can hardly type and write. Sensations in teeth.

In 2005 had MRIs done (lumbar, pelvic, brain, cervical) Ok.

Tried Valium (suggested by Neuro) with no improvement.

NSAIDs never helped.

Eperisone (Myonal) has been very good for Low Back Pain and Neck.

Blood test showing GTP (ALT) = 69. No evidence of autoimmune disease or infections.

Had tried B12 (methycobal), Magnesium, Vitamin E and other supplements with no change.

A neuro suggested Kennedy Disease... I am worried about ALS or MS.

EMG scheduled for Dec 16.

[wmac]

let me know how the emg went
wmac

[Tulio]

My EMG was performed as scheduled. Needles were put in my neck, bicept and forearm. It didn't catch the twitching because I was twiching in my foot when the needle was in my neck and so on... I wonder if I should trust the result of the EMG knowing that my twitching was not caught by the needles.

Any comments would be apreciated,
Thanks